Supernaturals
by 92A.N.D.y10
Summary: Bella has always known about supernaturals. Vampires, werewolves, shape-shifters, even 'vegetarian' vampires, who only hunt animals. She thinks her past has prepared her for anything, but when she returns to Forks, she finds that nothing could have prepared her for Edward. She knows what he is, but will she trust him with her secret, or will they end up killing each other?
1. Preface

**A/N - This is my first story, so please be as brutally honest as you feel necessary when reviewing. And Please review, I really want readers' input. :)**

**I love a lot of the all human stories I've read, but I thought it would be neat to do something crazy, so t****his story is not all human, but it's not all vampire either.**

**;) Curious yet?**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight, I am NOT Stephanie Meyers, though we apparently both have weird dreams, that's where I got the idea for this story.**

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**Preface**

My name is Isabella Swan, but no one calls me Isabella unless something is wrong. To most people I'm just Bella. My twin brother, Antonio, who absolutely MUST have a nickname for me all to himself, is the only one allowed to call me Izzy. Of course, I suppose I am no better, considering I am the only one allowed to call him Nio, while everyone else calls him Tony.

We both have extremely dark brown hair, made darker by the invisible strands of black throughout it. We also share the same dark brown eyes and, contrarily, pale skin. Anyone who sees us can tell we are related, we share many of the same facial features. We are both reasonably tall; Nio is about 6'2", and I am about 5'8".

We are also both multi-lingual. We know Italian, Spanish, English, American Sign Language, and Quileute, the language of the Native American tribe that resides on the reservation near Forks.

We actually do have what some call "twin telepathy", but it actually goes much farther than that. Nio and I can not only speak to each other telepathically, we can also feel everything the other is feeling. We only talk aloud when others are present; we both prefer the privacy of our minds. This connection can be severed, but we only do this when one or the other is seriously hurt or injured, to spare the other pain. It's only happened once.

My brother is a complete goof, but can be serious when the occasion calls for it, and is loyal to a fault. He is my very best friend, and the only one I can always count on. We know each other better than anyone (which makes sense considering we have been together since before we were born) and tend to keep to ourselves whenever we are around other people.

We are both artists in our own rights. Nio is extremely gifted in paper and canvas work, while I prefer music as my medium. Music is the one way I can channel my emotions without hurting anyone. I play music every minute I can, no matter what I am doing, and when I am playing, it is extremely difficult to get my attention. Nio loves to poke fun at me for this, even though his art elicits the same behavior in him.

My brother and I were born in Italy, and were kidnapped just after. If I sound rather calm about this, I am and I am not. I hate the fact that my brother and I were torn from our parents, effectively breaking their hearts; but if we had not been kidnapped, we would be dead.

See, I know all about super-naturals, Vampires, Werewolves, Shape-shifters, all of them. In fact, I interact with them quite often. I am tied to almost all of the super-natural races in some way; a few of the shifters are my blood relatives, and a few of my ancestors became vampires. I am sure you are wondering why this matters, what it has to do with kidnapping being necessary to my health.

So I will tell you a secret about my brother and me, something no one else knew until we moved back to Forks. Just this one secret; everything else will be explained as my story goes on.

Even though we do not belong to any of the three aforementioned super-natural races…

We are not human.

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**A/N - I promise, my chapters are longer. I also promise that they are much better than the Preface. This was very much an informative chapter used to provide background info. And a little dry, I know. So read the next chapter, and then you can quit the story if you don't like it.**

**Please review. And, like I said in the beginning, brutal honesty is welcome, even if you think something in the story is stupid, please tell me. Thank you all!**

**P.S. Bahahaha! Cliffie!**


	2. Returning

**A/N Hey guys, I know that the preface was a little short to be expecting many reviews, but I've started uploading chapters now, so tell me what you think.**

**Brutal Honesty! Pretty Please :)**

**Thanks to Sunflower3759 for being my wonderful Beta!**

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Returning

_"Nio, we are going to be late!"_ I yelled into my brother's mind, wishing he would stop acting out the "normal teen" façade quite so well. Our father, Charlie, had already left, and we needed to follow soon.

_"I'm coming!"_ he said, walking down the stairs. _"You know, you are awfully bossy, seeing as you are only 58 seconds older than me."_ He grinned and mussed my hair. _"Chill Iz, we will be there in plenty of time, we don't eat breakfast anyway."_

_"I know that,"_ I replied, _"but no one has seen us in two years, I want to get the mobbing done _before_ class starts."_

He laughed. _"Very true, who is driving?"_

It was my turn to laugh. _"Well, I am not sure about you, but I am taking my truck, you can take your bike if you want, but bring another set of clothes, you are going to get wet."_

_"Fine,"_ he grumbled, _"but I am putting it in the back in case the rain has stopped after school lets out."_

_"Good luck with that,"_ I replied, heavy on the sarcasm, _"this is the rainiest town in the USA, I doubt it is going to stop anytime soon."_ Nio just scowled and went to put his motorcycle in the back of my truck. I really do not understand his animosity toward my vehicle, at least it goes over 60 miles per hour, unlike my last truck. This one is newer, and in good condition. It is a blue Dodge Dakota quad cab, so it can seat more than two people, and our backpacks will no longer go flying out of the bed of the truck as we are driving to school.

When we arrived at Forks High, we were greeted by, as I predicted, a mob of our fellow students, all of whom were eager to claim our attention after our two-year absence. Though the interrogations were far from over, we eventually escaped the mob when the warning bell rang.

The first half of the day was uneventful, and to be honest, boring. I was in an Advanced Placement program the two years I was in Phoenix, so I already knew most of the information presented to me. I mostly tuned the teachers out, going over piano chords in my head.

At lunch, ignoring the numerous offers to sit at various tables, Nio and I sat at an empty table in a corner by ourselves, happy to escape the meaningless chatter of our schoolmates. I pulled out my laptop and began typing a set of lyrics that had been running through my head with the piano chords earlier in the day.

"What you got this time?" Nio said, asking aloud for appearances. He was used to my preoccupation when writing anything to do with music.

"Well, I only have what I think will be the chorus, but you can look if you want." I said, turning the computer to let him see.

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_When my time comes, forget the wrongs that I've done_

_Help me leave behind some reasons to be missed_

_Don't resent me, and when you're feeling empty_

_Keep me in your memory, leave out all the rest_

_Leave out all the rest._

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"Wow, morbid today, are we?" He joked, but his eyes were asking me what was wrong.

"Not really," I assured him, "the words just felt important, I'll tell you why when _I_ know."

"Alright." he said, accepting this.

Nio and I were talking, about nothing in particular, when I suddenly froze.

In order to understand what happened next, know this. I am what super-naturals would call a non-influential empath, meaning I can feel the emotions of everyone around me, but cannot manipulate them. I can however, remove a person's emotions completely, stripping them of their will, there very being. Needless to say, it is not an ability I use willingly.

"What is it?" Nio said urgently. "What is going on?"

"Can you hear that," I asked, lowering my voice, "on the far side of the room, to our left?" (Unlike vampires, werewolves, shape-shifters, or humans, our senses are centered on our hearing, though our sight is also important).

"What do you mean," he said quietly, "I only hear people breathing."

"Exactly," I replied, "now, what do you _not_ hear?" He paused.

"Heartbeats." He answered, only mildly surprised.

"Which means that there are vampires here." I finished.

"Right, and you care… why?" He asked, "No one seems curious about anyone but us, if there are vampires here, everyone seems used to them by now, they are not in danger of discovery."

"Because there is also another empath here, and I believe he is in that same area."

"Oh." Having progressed to total shock, he turned with me to see how many vampires we would have to deal with. At the table in the corner across the room, but on the same side of the cafeteria, we saw five vampires. There were two blondes; a female who could have been a model, even as a human, and a male who looked as if he was struggling with something. There was also a dark-haired male with the body of a professional body-builder, and an extremely tiny, pixie-like female with short, spiky black hair. But the last of their group was the one who kept my attention. He looked to be the youngest, of the males at least, and had hair a curious shade of bronze. He was also feeling confused, though I was not focused very much on this. I was too busy staring at his face. It was, without a doubt, the most gorgeous face I had ever seen.

"Isabella!" Nio exclaimed.

"What?" I replied. "What's wrong?"

"You tell me, I only said your name eight times."

"Oh" I said, "Well, they probably think I am insane."

"You are." Nio joked, then turned very serious. "Do you think they hunt here?"

"No, look at the color of their eyes Nio," I said, "they are vegetarians."

"Ah, that is interesting, wonder why they moved here?"

"The cloud cover, I would imagine." I replied. "We need to go to class, there are hardly any people left in here." Nio and I stood up and walked toward the door, and as we passed the vampires, the bronze-haired one froze, his eyes going onyx-black. In response to his sudden hostility, I froze as well, and I could feel the self-preservation part of my mind reaching for his, trying to strip him of his emotions, of his very will. I could feel how much he wanted to kill me, and my mind was attempting to eradicate the danger. I saw the other two males attempting to calm him, but this was irrelevant, I only wanted the danger gone. Some part of my mind still understood that he was a person, that I could not simply hurt him without allowing him a chance to explain. This ever-shrinking piece of my mind was all that was keeping me still, but I knew if I even twitched a muscle, I would lose my already shaky control.

"Bella, walk away, NOW!" Nio desperately tried to talk me down, even resorting to using my common name.

"Can't move." I said, gritting my teeth. He nodded, a determined look on his face.

"Sorry Izzy." He said, and pressed his hand flat against the scars on my back, igniting it with pain. I gasped, and slowly gained a measure of control over my body. When I was sure I could move without attacking anyone, I nodded, and Nio began pulling me out of the room. Luckily, this exchange had taken place in less than a minute, and no one else had noticed. Once he had gotten me outside, Nio turned to me and was silent. Finally he spoke.

"Can you go back to class?" He asked simply.

"No," I spat, "I need to leave. Now." I ran to my truck, pulled Nio's motorcycle out, and sped away toward Seattle, calling in a plane ticket on the way.

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**A/N The next chapter is twice as long as this one, so don't give up on me yet, lol.**

**The next chapter is done, I think I'm going to upload by 4/25**

**How many of you are wondering how Bella got the bike out of her truck by herself? Hmmmmmmm.**

**P.S. The song I used was Leave Out All the Rest by Linkin Park**


	3. Meeting

**A/N Thank you soooo much for the fantastic reviews! I really appreciate it, so keep it up!**

**Thanks again to Sunflower3759 for being a fantastic Beta! You have her to thank for the early upload :)**

**Sweetie7smiled - Since Bella and Tony are human, they can talk low enough that the vamps can't hear.**

**GottaLoveImperfection - I'm not telling! lol, but you'll find out soon enough ;)**

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Meeting

Nio and Charlie covered for me, telling everyone that my best friend back in Italy was seriously ill, and that I was needed there immediately.

When I returned, I was surprised to discover that the bronze-haired boy, whose name I now knew was Edward Cullen, had also been absent the rest of the week.

"_What are you going to do if he comes to school today?"_ Nio asked bluntly.

"_Stay as far away from him as possible."_ I replied.

"_And if you can't?"_

"_Well, if mind over matter doesn't work, I can always force a coma."_

Nio sighed, _"I think that would just create bigger problems. Inducing a coma would only suppress your mind for a short time, you need a permanent solution."_

"_I know,"_ I said calmly, _"but until then, I may not have a choice. Let's just go to school, we may not even have anything to worry about."_

Of course, I could never be that lucky.

The first half of the day was once again uneventful. When Nio and I arrived at the cafeteria, lunch was well underway, and my eyes unwillingly strayed to the table where I knew the Cullens were sitting, and saw that Edward had indeed returned to school. He was looking back at me, and I sensed the same confusion that I felt coming from him before our "episode" last week.

"I really wish I knew why he was so confused." I said. "It's mixed with a great deal of frustration."

"Well, you could always ask him," Nio said, holding back a smile. I rolled my eyes. I sensed someone coming up beside us, and turned to see the one person I genuinely liked in this school: Angela Weber, who had, of course, seen me blatantly staring at the Cullens. Well, one Cullen.

"You know, you two probably have more in common with them than anyone else in this school." She said in a conversational tone. I saw the Cullens' ears perk at this.

"And how do you figure that?" Nio asked.

"Well, you were all adopted." She said, looking down at the word "adopted" like she was ashamed that she had said it.

"Oh please, Ang," I said, "you act like that word is taboo. Yes, we were adopted, and we are immensely happy that we were, so stop acting like it is something to be embarrassed about." I smiled and rolled my eyes.

"Sorry," she said, grinning, "anyway, I have to go. See you later Bella, Tony.

When the bell rang, we left the cafeteria, careful to avoid the Cullens. We had only two class periods left, and I could only hope Edward would not be in either of them. When I got to my biology class, everyone else had already arrived and were all seated two students per table. I also saw that the class had only one open seat, and my new lab partner, of course, was none other than Edward Cullen. As I sat down, I saw him tense, and felt his pain as he caught my scent. This time though, there was determination instead of hostility, and so my reaction was not as strong. My mind still wanted to defend itself, but it was easier to control the urge to do so. I planned to ignore him, hoping that this would help him control his thirst, thereby decreasing the danger to myself and diminishing my mind's defense reaction. Apparently though, Edward had other plans.

"Isabella Swan, am I correct?" He asked, completely throwing me off guard.

"Yes," I replied slowly, "and you are Edward Cullen."

"I am," he said, just as Mr. Banner called the class to order. As luck would have it, he had scheduled a partnered lab that day, and the whole time I was uncomfortably close to Edward. I was worried that my concentration would slip, and I would end up doing something I would regret, but I needn't have worried. The real problem was trying not to stare at his ridiculously beautiful face. Even for a vampire, Edward was absolutely stunning. We finished the lab in less than 15 minutes, and lapsed into an awkward silence. Once again, Edward was the one to break it.

"How do you like Forks so far, Isabella?" he asked casually.

"Bella," I corrected, "I've always loved it here, ever since I moved to the USA."

"You weren't born here?" he asked, confused once again.

"Obviously." I smirked. He pushed on.

"How did you come to be in Forks?" he asked.

"It is not a short story," I warned, "do you really want to know?"

"Obviously." He smirked now.

"Guess I asked for that." I sighed. His gaze grew more intense.

"I truly do want to know." I shook my head, trying to clear it.

"Alright." I relented. "My brother and I were born in Italy while our parents were on vacation, but a man kidnapped us from the hospital and raised us. We realized the truth early on, but had nowhere to go, and were too young to do anything about it anyway." I had no idea why I was telling him this, Nio and I had never told anyone, not even Charlie. Once I began, though, I could not stop.

"When we were 12, we ran away. When we finally got caught, they put us in an orphanage. We were worried that the man would find us, but before he could, we met Charlie. He was on vacation again, and we were walking through town. When he saw us, he stopped us, and asked us where we were going. We told him the truth; that we were going back to the orphanage. A sad look crossed his face, and he offered to walk us there. We couldn't think of a polite way to say no, and really, we didn't want to. There was something in his face that stopped us, and he accompanied us back. We went back to our rooms, and Charlie disappeared into the front office. A few minutes later, Nio and I were called into the front office, and Charlie was still there. He asked us if we would like to live with him. He warned us that he lived very far away, and that we would have to leave our friends, but he would take very good care of us. Needless to say, we were shocked. We never would have imagined something this perfect could happen. Even if this stranger lived on the streets, at least we would be away from our kidnapper. We agreed immediately, and after signing some papers, Charlie brought us here."

"That was very kind of him." Edward stated simply.

"Yes, it was." I replied. "I hear it is similar to your story, apart from the ocean-crossing, I mean."

"Yes," he said, "Carlisle found me in a hospital where he was working. Both my parents had died, and Carlisle, compassionate as he is, took me in."

"It seems we were both very lucky." I stated simply, wondering what his real story was. There had to be more to it. I wondered why this Carlisle had chosen to 'turn' so many. When the bell rang, Edward and I both sprung up, eager to leave the class as quickly as possible. Consequently, we ended up walking out together, and both turned the same direction. I was headed to the very last classroom in this hallway, the Spanish room, and fervently hoped that Edward would turn into one of the others along the way. When I reached the last classroom, though, Edward was still just a few feet away from me, headed toward the same door. Well, at least I would not have to sit next to him, I was a teacher's assistant here, not a member of the class. With a sigh of resignation, I reached for the doorknob, only to find a white hand already there.

"After you." Edward offered politely.

"Thank you." I replied, shocked. I entered the class, and approached the front to speak with the instructor. She looked up and greeted me.

"Hola, ¿Cómo estás? She asked, testing my Spanish skills, I supposed, as I was showing up in the middle of the semester.

"Bien, gracias," I replied, "creo que soy su ayudante nuevo."

"¡Ah, fantástico!" She exclaimed. "Ahora, tendré quizá tiempo libre."

"Espero que puedo ayudar con eso." I laughed.

"Bien," She replied, and switched to English, "I only have a few papers for you to grade today, and since this is the last class period of the day, you can leave whenever you get finished."

"Thank you! That will be fantastic!" I exclaimed.

"Well, there is a desk by the window for you," she said, "and if you have one and keep the volume down, you can listen to your music player."

"Alright, I'll go get started." I smiled. I walked over to the desk, and I could feel the eyes of the class watching me. I could feel a variety of emotions emanating from the students, curiosity by far the most prevalent. One person in particular had the strongest curiosity. I looked around to pinpoint who it was, and saw that Edward was not the only vampire in this class. One of his brothers, the big, dark haired one called Emmett, was also in the room, and was openly staring at me. I imagine he was wondering what in the world had come over me last week. Obviously not the subtle type, he continued to stare, even after I caught his eye. I raised an eyebrow at him, and he winked at me. I rolled my eyes and turned back to my desk, intent on grading the papers and leaving as soon as possible. I could have gotten done faster, but I did not want the teacher to think that I rushed, and feel the need to recheck my work. So I forced myself to work at a normal pace, and still got done with half the class period left. I informed the teacher that I was finished, and left the classroom. I was only a few feet away from the door when I felt someone behind me. I spun around and saw that Edward was following me.

"Can I help you?" I asked.

"Maybe," he replied cryptically, "really, I'm just curious. May I walk you to your car?"

"I guess so." I said warily. "What are you curious about?"

"You said that you moved here when you were 12?" He said, phrasing it as a question.

"Yes, why?"

"When did you leave?" He asked. "My family and I moved here two years ago, and this is the first time any of us has ever seen you."

"Well, we left two years ago, to live in Phoenix for our freshman and sophomore years, and then our enrolment at Forks High was late, so we had to stay there for half of our junior year also."

"Why split up your schooling?" He inquired. "Surely it would have been easier to stay in one place?"

"It's complicated," I said, "there were a few… altercations, with some of the Quileutes. Nio and I didn't want anymore bad blood, so we agreed to leave Forks for awhile. Renee was only too happy to have us. Charlie had introduced us before, and I think we reminded her of the twins she lost. They would have been around the same age as we are." And again, here I am, spilling of my guts to total strangers. Well, just one, extremely beautiful stranger.

"That is… interesting." Edward stated. And for some reason, I believed him. He seemed genuinely interested in my life, which was odd. Not to mention dangerous, for both of us. We had arrived at my truck, and had once again lapsed into the seemingly inevitable awkward silence. This time, I broke it.

"Well, we both have siblings to wait for, so, I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"Of course, have a good afternoon, Bella." He replied.

"And you as well, Edward." He across the lot to his Volvo and got inside.

I had put my backpack in the back seat of my truck, and was about to get into the driver's seat, when I felt a knife dig into my back.

I froze, and silently berated myself. _Why weren't you paying attention! You should have felt him walk up behind you; he should NOT have been able to sneak up on you!_ I turned around slowly, and immediately recognized the boy with the knife. Tyler Crowley, he had a reputation as a playboy, but I would never have guessed he was capable of this.

"Hey Bella, how's it goin'?" He asked casually, pressing the tip of the knife under my chin. "How about we go somewhere and have some fun?" I glared at him, waiting for a lapse in his concentration, anything that would allow me to disarm him. Suddenly, there was someone behind him.

"How about not, Crowley." Edward growled. Tyler pushed the knife harder.

"Don't move Cullen, or I'll kill her." Edward started forward, but I warned him with a look, silently asking him to wait. I didn't expect him to listen, but something in my eyes must have convinced him, though he didn't look happy about it. It wasn't that I was ungrateful; I could just feel his anger, and I was afraid if he tried to stop Tyler, he would kill him accidentally. I had already warned Nio, and he was on his way.

Suddenly, there was someone else next to Edward.

"What are you doing, Crowley?" Emmett asked, sounding bored.

"Letting go of my sister, I hope." Nio said, sounding dangerously angry. All the while I was watching Tyler, hoping that something would cause the knife to slip, just slightly, I only needed to move forward about two inches, since he was already so close.

"Aw, come on Bella," he crooned, "call these goons off. You know being with me would be as good for you as breathing." He was obviously drunk.

I snorted. "I doubt that, Tyler." He glared at me, suddenly grabbing my arm, and twisting me around, with the knife still at my throat. We were now facing Edward, Emmett, and Nio, who were looking at the scene with anger and concern.

"How would you know? You don't know anything about me." Tyler snarled, unaware that he had put me in exactly the position I needed. I smiled, shocking Emmett and Edward, while Nio just looked amused, already knowing what I was about to do. I quickly reached my free arm outward, and just as quickly pulled it back, driving my elbow straight into Tyler's diaphragm. Then I quickly spun around.

"You're right Tyler, I don't know a thing about you, and I'm okay with that, but I've been trained as a vocalist since I was nine years old," I snarled, "I know _everything_ about breathing." Tyler, now unable to breathe, collapsed on the ground, while Nio called the police. Edward looked shocked, Emmett mildly impressed. After Tyler was taken away, I turned to Edward.

"Thank you," I said sincerely, "I'm fairly sure you just saved my life."

"It looks like you could have taken care of him by yourself." He replied.

"Maybe, but if you hadn't distracted him, I would have been forced to fight, so thank you."

"Of course," he said, surprised, "I suppose I will see you in biology tomorrow."

"Until tomorrow, then." I said, as he turned to walk back to his car. I watched as he and his family headed out of the parking lot, talking athmongst themselves.

I was definitely looking forward to tomorrow.

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**A/N And you still don't know what they are! Haha. Don't worry, as much as I love the suspense, you WILL eventually find out. ;)**

**I know it took long enough, but the next chapter finally has a part in Edward's POV! Fun times!**

**P.S. Keep reviewing, I love the feedback :)**


	4. Hinting

**A/N Again, thanks to Sunflower3759, Best Beta Ever!**

**Thank you all soooo much for reviewing! Love it! Keep it up! Pretty please... with cherries! :)**

**We get to meet Jasper today! =D**

**Again, and unfortunately, I own nothing. :( sad day**

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Hinting

The rest of the week and the beginning of the next was uneventful. Classes were boring, and I either talked with Nio or ran through piano chords in my head during all of them. We had established a smooth routine. I drove us both to school with Nio's bike in the back, and rain or shine, Nio drove his bike home. It pleased him, and it kept me from having to wait on him after last period. During the day, we would keep each other from being overly bored, and always sat together at lunch.

I only spoke with Edward when courtesy dictated I must. We had also settled into a comfortable routine, minimizing the pain and discomfort that being near each other inevitably brought.

We each sat as still as possible while not attracting too much attention. When we left the classroom, he walked slightly ahead of me so that my scent wouldn't travel back into his face. When we got to the Spanish classroom Edward, ever a gentleman, held the door for me, and we went to our respective seats. We both left early from the Spanish room nearly every day. I was fluent in Spanish, and so it took me no time at all to grade the teacher's papers. Edward, apparently also fluent, also finished early. When we finished at the same time, we walked out of the school in silence, and went our separate ways.

The following Wednesday, Nio and I met up for lunch as always, sitting at our usual table. I was quickly becoming agitated, as I always did before biology.

"Good grief Iz, this guy is really getting under your skin, isn't he?" Nio commented.

I sighed, "More than I would admit if you didn't already know." I said wryly.

"Yeah, because you know I'll give you crap about it." He laughed. I groaned.

He was still laughing when I saw Charlie walk into the cafeteria behind him. I flicked my eyes at Nio, and he glanced behind, narrowing his eyes in confusion. Accompanying Charlie was a tall, blonde, muscular man, who did not look happy.

"It's Brant," Nio observed, "I wonder what he wants."

"I don't know, but it had better be important." I said, gritting my teeth.

"It would have to be, for him to come here." Nio replied.

The pair arrived at our table, and Charlie turned to me.

"This man says he knows you from Italy." He said, face grim. "I would have made him wait until after the school let out, but he said it was urgent."

"It's alright, Charlie," I reassured him, "We'll make sure he doesn't get out of line." I winked at him, and he walked away, still looking uneasy. I then turned to Brant.

"This had better be good, Brant," I warned, "people are already staring, and we can't afford any more curiosity."

"I know," he replied, "but you need to know about this now."

"Then spit it out already," Nio urged, "the sooner you get out of here, the better."

Brant nodded. "I had people investigating a few strange deaths down around Hoquiam and Aberdeen. We had a hunch that whoever was responsible wasn't human, and we were right. We think it was a vampire, or multiple vampires, and they seem to be moving north, in this direction."

"And you think they're coming here for a reason?" I asked.

"Yes," Brant replied, "their direction seems extremely deliberate."

"But why?" Nio wondered. "It sounds like a couple of newer vampires gone rogue, what could they possibly want here?"

"Well, your sister, for one. But there's more." Brant said, turning to me. "This is just speculation, but we think that whoever it is wants you to know they're coming, and we don't think they are new. Newborns make more of a mess, and leave more bodies. These deaths just came out of nowhere, and there are only a few in each location."

"So you think it's a mature vampire, looking to make a scene?" I inquired.

"Yes, and a scene specifically designed for you, which worries me." He replied.

"Thank you Brant, you should probably go now." I said. I was getting extremely angry. If this was true, not only were these vampires taking human lives, but they were doing it in such a way as to risk exposure, which would create a vast array of problems. Suddenly, there was a presence behind me.

"Hello, is there a problem here?" I turned to see the blonde male vampire, Jasper, looking slightly concerned. I was wondering what had possessed him to come over here when I realized, Brant was a werewolf. The vampires would have smelled him and been concerned, believing I was human.

Now that he was closer, I could tell that Jasper was the other empath that I had sensed on our first day here. I couldn't pinpoint him before because he was surrounded by his siblings. When he sensed my anger, he most likely thought that I was angry at Brant, and came to make sure the 'humans' weren't hurt.

"No problem," I replied, smiling warmly, "but thank you, Jasper, it was kind of you to ask."

Jasper narrowed his eyes suspiciously at Brant, not quite believing me. Brant immediately bridled, and stood as if to confront him. I stood also, stepping toward them and grabbing Brant's elbow. He whipped his head toward me, glaring. I just raised an eyebrow, and nodded toward the door. He nodded grimly, and with one last glare at Jasper, he turned and left.

"How long have you known that guy?" Jasper asked.

"Long time," Nio answered, "he's a good friend of ours." Jasper still looked suspicious, but seemed mollified by the answer. Or Nio's calmness at least. We still had half the lunch period left, but I couldn't stay in here any longer.

"Well, I'm going to go outside for a while." I told Nio. Turning to Jasper, I said, "Thank you again, I promise you, he means no one here any harm." Jasper looked startled, sensing the double meaning behind my words.

I grabbed my backpack and left the cafeteria, curious glances following me out. I went to my truck, and cranked the radio, playing my favorite Tchaikovsky CD.

After a few minutes of dissecting Swan Lake, my mind drifted, and started going over the song I started that first day in the cafeteria. I turned off the radio, got my guitar out of the back seat, and went to sit on the tailgate of my truck.

I started strumming the chords in my head, and soon enough I had a verse to go with the chorus I had written before.

* * *

(Verse)

_I dreamed I was missing, you were so scared_

_But no one would listen, 'Cause no one else cared_

_After my dreaming, I woke with this fear_

_What am I leaving, when I'm done here?_

_So if you're asking me I want you to know_

(Chorus)

_When my time comes, forget the wrongs that I've done_

_Help me leave behind some reasons to be missed_

_Don't resent me, and when you're feeling empty_

_Keep me in your memory, leave out all the rest_

_Leave out all the rest._

* * *

At this point, the lyrics were just running across my mind. I paused, got my laptop, and typed them out. I quickly put the computer away and picked up my guitar. This time, as I played, I sang. I wasn't aware that there was someone beside me until I finished. Without turning, I spoke.

"How long have you been standing there, Edward?"

"Did you write that?" He asked.

"You're avoiding my question." I retaliated, turning toward him.

"Long enough to know that you are a Tchaikovsky fan," he admitted, "and that you are a talented vocalist."

"Thank you." I replied, surprised.

"Your turn." he said.

"My turn to what?" I asked, dodging.

"To answer my question." He smirked, sensing my reluctance.

"Yes, I wrote it," I said, "but it isn't finished."

He just looked at me intently for a moment, and then spoke.

"Do you mind if I change the subject?" He asked. I laughed.

"Please do." I said, relieved.

"I was just curious about something you said to my brother."

"Jasper." I affirmed.

"Yes, you said that the man you were talking to meant no one any harm."

"And?" I asked.

"It almost seemed as if you were speaking of someone other than yourself." He said.

"Was I too cryptic?" I asked. I would have ended it there, but I wanted to see the look on his face. "I meant that Brant would not harm anyone here. I assumed that, since none of you are human, you would understand the double meaning."

Edward froze, his face a mask of shock and disbelief. I fought a smile as he quickly regained his composure. Outwardly at least; inside he was still confused, shocked, and extremely wary. He smirked quite convincingly.

"Are you really laboring under the delusion that we are not human?" He asked sarcastically.

"I don't know about that," I replied, holding back a smile, "but you seem to be laboring under the delusion that I am."

"That you are what?" He asked.

"Human." I replied nonchalantly. Now Edward truly froze; he didn't even breathe. Edward's fear and anger seemed to be fueling and fighting against each other, and I decided I needed to try and calm him down. Fast.

"Easy Edward," I cautioned, "I mean no harm to you or your family." He calmed a bit at my words, and abruptly left, probably to find his family.

I hoped he wouldn't do anything drastic. I really hadn't meant to frighten him. I just enjoyed teasing him, apparently a little too much.

* * *

**Edward Cullen**

I walked quickly back to the cafeteria, hoping to catch my brothers and sisters before they left for their classes. We needed to find Carlisle and Esme, immediately if not sooner.

As luck would have it, all of my siblings were still seated at our table when I walked in. Jasper, sensing my distress, signaled the others, and they all stood and came to meet me. I motioned them to follow, and walked back out of the cafeteria.

When they reached me, Jasper raised his eyebrows, and I listened to his thoughts.

"_What happened Edward?" he asked, "What's wrong?"_

"We need to go." I told them. "Now. I'll explain later." I turned and walked toward my car. They looked at me curiously, but followed me without question.

On the way home, I called Carlisle at the hospital.

"Edward?" He answered. "What is it?"

"Can you leave?" I asked hurriedly.

"I suppose so, it is slow today. Why? What's wrong?" He answered, growing concerned.

"Just meet us at home." I said quickly, snapping my phone shut.

We live in a formerly abandoned mansion that sits next to the Calawah River where it bends to the east. I drove north on the 101, and then turned right on Sitkum Solduc Road. I then turned right onto our obscure turnoff, and soon enough we were home.

Even though I had driven as fast as I could without destroying the car, Carlisle was already there, waiting with Esme. Everyone turned to me, and waited silently for an explanation.

"They know we are not human." I stated simply.

"Who?" Asked Esme, looking frightened.

"Bella and Tony Swan." I answered.

"Bella's the one who made Edward go insane." Rosalie interjected. A low growl began in my chest.

"Oh stop it, Edward," Alice scolded, "you're just mad because it's true."

I sighed, she was right. I didn't understand what had happened. Bella's scent affected me like no one else's had ever done; it was infuriating.

"And how did they find out?" Carlisle asked calmly.

"The way she made it sound, they already knew." I replied.

"Well, what do they want? What are they going to do?" Emmett asked.

I hesitated. "I… don't know." My family just stared.

"That's what disturbed me most in the first place," I went on, "I was concentrating as hard as I could, but as much as I tried, I was not hearing anything from her."

"Fantastic." Rosalie commented sarcastically.

"Did she _say_ what she planned to do with this information?" Jasper asked.

"No," I replied hesitantly. "She said something else though."

"Which was…?" Emmett asked impatiently.

"It was almost as if she was responding to my fear," I said, "she said that she meant no harm to me or my family." I suddenly caught a thought from Jasper.

"_Hmm, that might explain it."_

"What might explain what?" I asked him. Everyone else looked at us, also waiting for an explanation.

"You said it was as if she was responding to your fear." He affirmed. "I think you may be right."

"How is that possible?" Esme asked.

"Jasper thinks she is an empath." I replied. Turning to Jasper, I asked, "But if that is true, why did she not just _make_ me calm down?"

"Everyone's powers are different, Edward," Carlisle interjected, "she may not be able to influence emotions the way that Jasper can."

"Or she may not have wanted to." Alice added.

"Why do you think Bella is an empath, Jasper?" Rosalie wondered.

Jasper explained. "The first day she was there, I felt dozens of emotions coming from that direction, but only she and Tony were there. At first, I thought she just had a lot on her mind, or was upset about something. When I looked at her though, she just looked calm, and maybe bored. Then I realized that almost every emotion coming from her was also coming from someone else in the room."

"And the ones that weren't?" Rosalie asked.

"Are the ones I assume were her own." Jasper answered.

"There's more," I informed them, "she also said that she is not human." My family was silent.

"Well, what're we gonna do?" Emmett asked, ready for a decision to be made.

"I'll call the hospital." Carlisle said. "Esme, you call the school, tell them there's a family emergency and that the Cullens will be absent for the rest of the week." Esme obeyed.

"What are we going to do in the meantime?" Rosalie asked.

"Stay here and wait." Carlisle replied. "I don't believe Bella means to expose us, especially since she told Edward she knows what we are, and that she is not human. However, I think we should stay here for a few days as a precautionary measure. If nothing happens in the next few days, I say we make plans to speak with her and find out just what she and Tony are, and what it is they want." He turned to Alice. "Do you see them instigating anything in the next few days?"

Alice would know. She had an extremely useful, if ambiguous, talent. She could see the future, though anything pertaining to people was relative, and changed as soon as the subjects changed their minds.

"They have no plans to expose us in the near future, or to cause us any trouble at all." Alice answered.

"Good," Carlisle continued, "I will return to the hospital on Saturday, and you all should go back to school on Monday."

"Why won't you wait until Monday as well?" I asked.

"I have a new long-term patient, and I don't want to have to reschedule their appointment." Carlisle answered.

My family calmed significantly now that a plan had been made. I was the only one who was still uncomfortable and confused. Jasper sensed this and spoke to me.

"_What about Bella has you so riled up?"_ he asked, speaking with his mind to afford me a small amount of privacy.

"I wish I knew." I muttered. The rest of my family looked at me curiously.

Emmett, never one to be subtle, asked me outright, "Who or what in the world shoved a pole up your butt?"

"Bella." Rosalie answered for me, smirking.

"Hmmm." Emmett murmured. Then he sent me a thought. _"You know, there's only one person in the entire world that can make me that crazy."_ The though, flicking his eyes at Rosalie, his mate.

I snorted, Bella was an annoying pest that had interfered in my otherwise peaceful life. There was absolutely no possible way that I would _ever_ have feelings like that for her.

* * *

**A/N Again, the song I'm using at the moment is Leave Out All the Rest by Linkin Park**

**I know I threw in that bit about the Quileutes last chapter, and then kind of left it hanging. It will be explained further after they have a discussion with the Cullens.**

**Speaking of, it's coming up! The moment you've all been waiting for! Lol, I know you are all just dying to know what Bella and Tony are, and I can now assure you that you will find out, not in the next chapter, but definitely within the next one or two after. :)**

**Fair warning: I have been updating once a week, but I may not be able to next week due to the gigantic amount of homework my college professors have assigned me. Sorry, and I will do my best to update the week after.**


	5. Examining

**A/N Sooooo sorry it took so long to update. :( The college semester has been wrapping up, and I graduated, so I was crazy busy. I should be back to updating at least once every other week.**

**Yay! Bella meet's Carlisle today! :)**

**Just a tip; My chapters begin in whoever's POV I ended the last one in. So this one starts in Edward's because he was the last POV in the previous chapter.**

**Just a clarification since the reviewer's PMs are disabled. It's not an army, it's just one or a few rogue vamps :)**

**Much love to my lovely Beta, Sunflower3759**

**Disclaimer: I own NOTHING! :'(**

* * *

Examining

As Alice had predicted, nothing happened. The next few days were immensely tedious. Emmett very nearly drove us all insane, complaining about how bored he was. Even Rosalie was ready to bite his head off.

Thursday, Carlisle focused on finding information about Bella and Tony. He found nothing that we did not already know. They were born in Italy, adopted when they were twelve, and moved here with Chief Swan five years ago.

That was everything about their life in Italy, and there was next to nothing about their life here. There were the records of their nationalization, school records, and records of medical visits, but nothing else. No address, no other personal information at all.

After that, Carlisle gave up, but I decided to try searching Chief Swan. I typed Charles Swan into the computer, and found much of the same. His birth records came up, as did his medical visits and school records, but no more personal information was found. It was as if he was born, went to school, and then disappeared. I told Carlisle about my findings.

"It looks as if they are making sure no information that can be used to track them reaches the public eye." He commented.

"Or they are erasing it." I theorized. "But why?"

"There are a number of possibilities," Carlisle speculated, "we will have to ask them to be sure."

Friday was more of the same. Emmett complained, everyone else told him to shut up, and Carlisle researched. This time though, he called some of his friends to see if anyone had heard of Bella or Tony, or knew anything at all about them.

A few had heard rumors; the most disturbing one came from Ireland. A member of the coven there, Liam, had heard that a vampire was hunting Bella and Tony. Carlisle asked that Liam not repeat their conversation to anyone else. He did not wish to put Bella and Tony in danger, as they had done nothing to harm us.

All in all, we were coming up with more questions and no answers. We decided that we needed to have a talk with Bella and Tony, and clear up all of these rather dangerous unknowns. And I decided that I needed to have a talk with Carlisle.

* * *

**Bella Swan**

The Cullens were absent the last two days of that week.

On Thursday, Nio and I sat together at lunch, as always, and waited for the Cullens to appear. They didn't. This worried me; the Cullens never missed school unless it happened to be one of Forks' rare sunny days. I looked across the table at Nio, and he looked worried as well.

"I hope they haven't done anything impulsive," I said, "I would hate to have unwittingly run them out of town."

"I agree," Nio said, "not that it would be entirely your fault."

"Thanks." I said sarcastically. Nio smiled.

"Anyway, I am sure that at least one of them is intelligent enough to at least attempt to speak with us before running away. Moreover, I am sure that a coven as large as theirs would stay and confront the issue, if only because of their numbers."

"True," I conceded, somewhat reassured, "I should probably warn Brant and the others that they might seek us out, so they don't get overly territorial."

"Good idea," Nio laughed, "I am sure Brant would just jump at the chance to challenge Jasper."

"I am sure he would." I agreed, smiling.

"Well, we had better go to class." Nio commented. I agreed, and we went our separate ways to our classes.

In Biology, the class felt strangely empty without Edward. I had no idea why I felt his absence so acutely, but it was aggravating. Also aggravating was the fact that I could not stop thinking about him. Even going over my music didn't help, which was absolutely a first. Suddenly, Nio spoke to me.

"_Would you please stop?" _He exclaimed._ "You're starting to make _me_ drool over him!"_

"_I am not drooling over him!"_ I retorted. _"I am trying _not_ to think about him."_

"_Well, you are _not_ succeeding."_ He said. _"I swear, you're like a love-struck puppy, eye-stalking him all the time."_

I promptly blocked him from my mind, and attempted to pay attention to the teacher. I failed miserably. I would like to say it was because the teacher was boring, which he was, but truthfully, something Nio had said startled me. He had called me love-struck, which was, of course, ridiculous. I did not even harbor any feelings of affection, let alone love, for Edward. I pushed the thought out of my head; it was absolutely ludicrous.

In the Spanish classroom I found, much to my surprise, that I missed Emmett a bit as well. He had recently made it a game to try and make me laugh while I was grading during class. He usually succeeded, though I kept the volume down to a low chuckle. I hoped the Cullens would return the next day.

On Friday, however, they were absent once again. I truly hoped that my actions had not caused them to flee. I hoped that Nio was right, and that they would attempt to speak with us first.

All through the lunch period, I dreaded Biology and my TA hour in the Spanish room. I knew it would be worse than usual without Edward there, and I hated that. What was it about Edward Cullen that made me so insane? It was getting ridiculous. All day, all I had done was think about Edward. If he was still in Forks, if he and his family were planning on confronting me. I very nearly drove Nio insane; he had to, once again, block my thoughts from his mind in order to achieve a level of peace.

My last two classes were as awful as I had imagined. I left early, leaving Nio's bike behind and driving home.

When I arrived at home, I passed time doing mundane things. I cycled loads of laundry, did homework, and made Charlie's dinner. While I was cooking, Nio arrived and put his bike back into the bed of my truck. Apparently, he had been waiting to 'talk' with me.

"_What is wrong, Bella?"_ He began immediately. _"No one has ever gotten under your skin the way this guy has."_

"_I honestly do not know,"_ I replied truthfully, _"he's like a splinter under my fingernail, and I can't get him out."_ Nio contemplated this.

"_Then maybe you should stop trying."_ He said suddenly. _"It's obviously not working, and it might be a good idea to get to know him better, anyway."_

"_And why is that?"_ I asked, curious to see his logic. _"I do not want to hurt him."_

"_Exactly!"_ Nio exclaimed. _"Getting to know him better would help you both. It would help him control his thirst, which, in turn, would help you control your reactions to it."_

"_Interesting theory, Nio, but it is dangerous."_ I cautioned.

"_I think we have gone beyond dangerous, Izzy,"_ He replied._ "Besides, we are going to have to explain everything to them anyway; they deserve that much."_

"_True,"_ I sighed, _"I just wish it wasn't so complicated."_ Nio snorted.

"_When have our lives _not_ been complicated?"_ He asked sarcastically.

"_Unfortunately, never."_ I replied, also greeting Charlie, who had just arrived.

"Hi Charlie, I put your dinner on the table for you."

"Thanks, Bells," he replied, "I'm starving. How're you doing, Tony?"

"Fantastic," Nio answered, "school's easy, as always." Charlie went into the kitchen to eat, leaving Nio and me alone again. I was running over my new song, the one Edward had caught me singing, with Nio, and he helped me come up with a new section.

* * *

_Forgetting all the hurt inside_

_You've learned to hide so well_

_Pretending someone else can come_

_And save me from myself_

_I can't be who you are_

* * *

It always surprised me when Nio wrote Lyrics; it just was not his 'thing'. Whenever he did, though, they were always meaningful. I was unsure as of yet where this section would fit into the song, but I thought it might be a bridge. A few hours later, I decided to go to bed, and Nio followed. We bid Charlie goodnight, and headed up the stairs.

Saturday offered little in the way of distractions. I had an appointment at the hospital later in the morning, but mostly my mind was allowed to wander where it would. Nio had decided not to accompany me, as hospitals depressed him.

Bored, and having done all of my homework, I decided to read. I was hoping to keep my mind busy, or at least off of Edward. I went to my bookshelf and chose Jane Eyre, only to remember, as I reached chapter twelve, that the leading man's name was Edward. This, of course, derailed my attempts to keep my mind off of Edward. Luckily, it was time to leave.

When I arrived at the hospital, I asked the nurse at the front desk what floor I needed, and went to the elevator. Once on the correct floor, I checked in and sat down to wait, ready to distract myself. Luckily, the doctor was ready, and distractions were unnecessary. The nurse at the desk called my name, and I walked up.

"Good morning, Carla here will show you to the room." She said, gesturing to another nurse.

I followed Carla down two hallways, to a door at the very end of the second one. Carla knocked on the door, and a voice spoke.

"Come in, please." Carla opened the door.

* * *

**Edward Cullen**

On Saturday morning, I drove to Forks Community Hospital to visit Carlisle. He had already been there for a few hours, and I hoped he would be able to take a short break to speak with me.

I arrived at the hospital and went up to Carlisle's floor. He worked with patients that had terminal diseases. He enjoyed being able to cheer them up, and was always hoping to find a way to cure them.

When I arrived on the correct floor, Carlisle was not in his office. I asked one of the nurses where I might find him. She told me that he was waiting for a patient, and pointed me toward the correct room. I thanked her and went to find him.

I walked into the room, and Carlisle was sitting in a chair, reading what I assumed to be the patient's charts.

"Do you have a moment, Carlisle?" I asked.

"Of course," he replied, "but my new patient arrives in about fifteen minutes."

"I'll be quick then." I said. Carlisle glanced at the charts again.

"Who is your new patient?" I asked.

"Isabella Valeriani," he answered, "she's the long term patient I mentioned on Wednesday. I feel sorry for her."

"Well, you do deal with the terminally ill." I said.

"Yes," he replied, "but my patients are usually older, this one is only seventeen." I felt a pang of sympathy. No one should have to deal with a terminal illness so young.

"That is different, what is wrong with her?" I inquired.

"Well, I feel sorry for her because of her past as well. She was first hospitalized when she was sixteen because she had been kidnapped and tortured." Carlisle explained with a sad expression. "But the reason she is here today is because she has Multiple Myeloma, which they found not long after the kidnapping."

"Wow, a seventeen-year-old with cancer." I felt sorry for her too; she'd had such terrible things happen to her while she was so young. It was an odd cancer as well, for someone so young.

"It is located in the bone marrow, correct?" I asked.

"Yes," Carlisle affirmed, "it creates an excess of anomalous plasma, or 'myeloma' cells, which form tumors in multiple locations in the bone marrow, hence the name. Her case is strange, though." He said, growing thoughtful.

"She is stuck in stage two?" I asked, reading his thoughts.

"Yes," he answered, "she refused treatment, and they have been waiting for it to progress to stage three, but it never has."

"That is strange." I commented. "So what is she here for if she refused treatment?"

"Today she is here to meet with me and schedule CT scans, et cetera."

"Why does she bother with tests if she won't accept treatment?" I asked incredulously.

"I don't know; that is one of the questions I plan on asking her today," Carlisle replied, "but I am sure you did not drive here just to inquire after my latest patient."

"No, I didn't," I sighed, "I just wanted to know if you had any theories about why Bella's scent affects me so powerfully."

He contemplated. "I was thinking about that, and there is only one possibility that seems remotely plausible to me."

"And what would that be?" I asked curiously.

"When I was in Italy, the Volturi had a term for people whose scent affected a vampire the way Bella's affects you. They called them 'singers' because their blood 'sang' to one particular vampire." He paused. "The Volturi would joke about them because the vast majority of them were killed the instant the vampire caught their scent. You showed a tremendous amount of restraint sparing her life."

"It almost went in a very different direction, Carlisle." I replied somberly. "I almost killed her."

"I know," Carlisle stated, "but you didn't, and it is something you should be proud of." I grew quiet.

"Thank you, Carlisle." Then, I suddenly remembered something.

"From what the others said, Bella didn't look all that pleased during our first encounter either. They said that it looked as if Tony was attempting to restrain her, just as Em and Jazz were attempting to restrain me. At first I thought they were imagining things, but…" I trailed off.

"But since she told you that they are not human, they may not be far off." Carlisle finished. I nodded.

"But what could she possibly do to me?" I wondered. "She may not be human, but she looks just as frail."

"At the risk of sounding clichéd, I would remind you that looks can always be deceiving." Carlisle replied. "Alice looks completely harmless, doesn't she?"

"True," I said, "but I just can't see Bella harming anyone." Carlisle laughed.

"The same could be said of Alice… until you see her in action." He retorted, still laughing.

"True again." I said ruefully. "Now that I think about it, Tony is lean, but very muscular. His build reminds me of Jasper. Bella could be the same; she always wears clothes that cover nearly her entire body."

"Hmmm," Carlisle contemplated for a moment, "that is entirely possible, though I suppose it is useless wondering. We can just add this to our ever-growing list of questions to ask them."

"And when will we be asking these questions?" I asked. "When do you want to confront them?"

"I don't know that it will be a confrontation so much as a conference." Carlisle replied. "Alice did say that they do not plan on causing us any trouble."

"Poor choice of words then," I stated impatiently, "but when?"

"I am not sure," Carlisle answered, "I suppose I will write them a letter, and you or one of the others can give it to them during school. It is slightly formal, but I do not want them to think we are interrogating them."

"Even though that is exactly what we'll be doing." I said, smirking. Carlisle sighed.

"Yes, I suppose so."

At that moment, we heard a nurse walking up to the door. She knocked, and Carlisle spoke.

"Come in, please." She walked in, and Carlisle greeted her.

"How can I help you, Carla?" He asked.

"Your new patient is here, Dr. Cullen." She said, stepping aside, and the patient stepped into the room.

* * *

**Bella Swan**

I still could not see into the room Carla was directing me to. I heard the doctor's voice again.

"How can I help you, Carla?" Carla answered.

"Your new patient is here, Dr. Cullen." What? Did she just say 'Cullen'? I did not have time to process this, as she had stepped aside. I stepped into the room and thanked the nurse as she left. The doctor stood up, and walked forward to greet me, and of course, he was a vampire. I started to step toward him when suddenly; we both froze in our tracks. I was not entirely sure why he had stopped. I could feel his shock and confusion, though I did not know why it was directed at me. But imagine my surprise, when just behind him, was Edward.

Since my mind was no somewhat accustomed to its reaction to Edward, I was able to control any urge I may have had to hurt him. I decided to speak with the doctor.

"Dr. Cullen, is it?" I asked politely.

"Yes." He said. He had gotten over his shock a bit, but was still extremely confused, and now wary.

"May I ask you a question?" I asked. He nodded. "What exactly caused you so much shock as I walked in?"

"Your…eyes." He answered hesitantly. My focus immediately sharpened.

"You have met someone else with the same eyes?"

"I have." He answered.

"What was her name?" I inquired.

"Vera," he replied, "it was short for—

"Iverania," I interrupted, "I know." He looked startled.

"May I ask a question?" Edward asked suddenly. There was quite a bit of confusion in the room today. I turned to him.

"Of course." I replied.

"What is your last name? You go by Swan, but your medical chart says Valeriani."

"Ah," I replied, "When Charlie adopted us, we kept our last name, though we do not often use it."

"_This_ is Bella Swan?" Carlisle interjected, shocked once again.

"Yes, Dr. Cullen," I affirmed, "Valeriani is my Italian surname, I go by Swan here."

"Why are you here?" Edward asked.

"Well, I assume you have read my charts, Dr. Cullen?" I turned to him.

"Call me Carlisle, and yes, I have read your charts."

"Then you know why I am here." I said. Their confusion increased. Edward spoke.

"But if you are not human –

"If human blood is mixed with my own, I become susceptible to human illnesses," I interrupted, "I just happened to develop a rather nasty one." I felt Carlisle's compassionate side take over; he felt a great deal of sympathy for me.

"Why did you refuse treatment?" He asked kindly.

"It's pointless," I replied, "it wouldn't work, and my own blood fights it more effectively than anything, though it cannot stop the disease completely."

"So the cancer is still killing you?" Edward asked.

"Yes." I answered bluntly. I sensed a great deal of pity coming from Edward. I sighed.

"Save your pity, Edward, I do not plan on dying." They both registered shock as I smiled again.

"How do you plan on stopping it?" Carlisle asked.

"Well, members of my race usually stop aging around the age of twenty-five. Since this disease won't allow me to live that long, I plan on taking a different route."

"What route?" Carlisle asked. At the same time, Edward asked, "What race?" I turned to Edward first.

"I would rather refrain from answering that question until I can voice my explanations to your entire family." I answered. He nodded reluctantly, and I turned to Carlisle.

"As for your question, I plan on using venom." More shock.

"Vampire venom?" Carlisle confirmed.

"Yes," I replied, "my body would react roughly the same way a human's does."

"What does Tony think about this?" Edward inquired.

"He agrees it is necessary," I answered, "he might even join me."

"Why?" Carlisle asked.

"Nio and I have an… interesting connection," I replied, "it would be better for us both to go through the process at the same time."

"Okay…?" Edward said, confused. I decided we should continue this conversation at a later date.

"I know I have in no way alleviated any of your confusion, but I must ask a favor." I said.

"And what is that?" Carlisle asked warily.

"Nio and I will explain everything," I replied, "but give us a week, just one week. We have an extremely pressing issue that we need to deal with, but one week from today, even if this issue remains unresolved, we will meet with you and give you whatever answers you need."

"That sounds… reasonable," Carlisle stated, "I suppose we should schedule CT scans now, though I am not sure what the point is."

"Oh, it gives Renee and Charlie a small sense of action. Renee doesn't know what we are, so she was confused when I refused treatment. Charlie knows, but he is human; he can't always fully comprehend the differences, and this allows them to feel proactive about my condition."

"Ah, that is very kind of you." Carlisle commented.

"I don't know about kind, but it keeps them off my back." I said, grinning. Carlisle laughed, and I grew suddenly thoughtful. I turned to Edward.

"I am truly sorry for upsetting you like I did." I apologized. "I should have realized that my words would evoke that type of reaction, but I didn't think before I spoke, I hope you can forgive me." Edward seemed surprised at this.

"No harm done," he smiled, "though we were debating whether to knock down your door or just put a hole in the side of your house." I laughed, which caused me to break through Nio's barriers, startling him.

"_Whoa, what did I miss?"_ He asked. Then, seeing all that had happened, he laughed. He suddenly stopped.

"_Did you just laugh?"_ He asked, shocked.

"_Yes, why?"_ I asked, growing defensive.

"_You haven't _really _laughed in at least a year,"_ He explained. _"Maybe this guy is good for you."_ I felt immediately guilty. Nio was right; I had been bordering on depression since I was sixteen, and it was not fair to him. I should have tried harder to be cheerful, at least for his sake, since he shared nearly all my thoughts and emotions. I had never even considered how I was making _him_ feel.

"_Not what I meant, Izzy."_ Nio sighed, exasperated.

"Bella? What is wrong?" Edward asked, concerned. I snapped out of my reverie, and bid Nio goodbye. This was one explanation that would have to wait.

"Nothing is wrong." I replied. He looked unconvinced. I smiled. "Just another thing I will have to explain to you next week."

"As you wish." He replied, already growing impatient. I turned to Carlisle.

"Are we done for today, Dr. Cullen?" I asked. He smiled. He was much less wary, now that he knew his questions would be answered.

"Carlisle," he reminded me, "and yes, I think that will do for today."

"Then I will see you next week." I replied. I bid them good afternoon, and left the room.

* * *

**Edward Cullen**

After Bella left, I turned to Carlisle.

"That was interesting." I commented. Carlisle was thoughtful.

"Yes it was," he replied, "I am convinced that Bella, at least, means us no harm. I still plan to ask her quite a few questions, though."

"How can you be so sure?" I asked. "You only just met her." Carlisle became quiet, and I saw a vision in his head. A face with eyes identical to Bella's.

"Who is she?" I asked.

"Her name was Vera," Carlisle answered, "she was a very good friend of mine, back when I lived in Italy."

"And what does she have to do with Bella?" I asked, confused, "aside from the eyes?" He considered this.

"Well, after my initial shock, I thought the eyes could be a coincidence. But her reaction to Vera's name, and the fact that she knew that her full name was Iverania, makes me think that Bella might be Vera's descendent."

"But what does that have to do with anything?" I asked, still confused. Carlisle sighed.

"This might be nostalgia talking, but Vera would never have willingly harmed another living creature unless she had no other choice. If Bella is anything like her, we have nothing to worry about." He snapped back to the present.

"Why don't you go home and pass our newly acquired information to the rest of the family. I have a few more things to do here, and then I'll follow."

"Alright," I replied, standing, "I will see you at home then." I left the hospital, and spent the drive home attempting to think about something _other_ than Bella Swan.

* * *

**Bella Swan**

I spent the entire drive home trying to push thoughts of Edward Cullen out of my mind. Once again, I failed miserably. It was irritating, being so confused all of the time. I had no idea why I could not stop thinking about him. And now, my brother seemed to think that was good for me.

"_No, I believe I said that maybe _he_ is good for you. Your confusion is just an amusing bonus for me."_ I sighed, there was no privacy when you were mentally connected with your twin. And apparently, he was not finished.

"_You know,"_ he continued, _"I still think it would be a good idea to get to know him. At the very least it would help both of you cope with your inevitable urge to kill one another."_ I could tell he was really trying not to laugh. I decided to ignore him, I had a lot of work to do, and only a week to do it.

"_A week!"_ Nio exclaimed. _"Do you think we can figure this out by then?"_ I sighed.

"_Not really,"_ I admitted, _"but I can't in good conscience make them wait any longer."_

"_But they know we don't mean them any harm now, right?"_ He asked, going over my conversation with Carlisle and Edward.

"_Yes,"_ I replied, _"Carlisle, at least, is convinced."_

"_Then why does it matter how long they wait?"_ he wondered.

"_Manners, Nio,"_ I sighed, _"besides, convinced or not, they deserve an explanation."_

* * *

**A/N The countdown begins! Two more chapters until you find out what in the world Bella and Tony are! :)**

**Oh, there is a link to a map image on my profile so that you can see which way the Bad Vamps are moving, it will come in handy later, and I mentioned cities in the last chapter, so you can see where those are too.**

**Please Review! I'm loving the ones I'm getting, so if you already review, Yay! I love you! Keep it up! If you don't, please start!**

**Again, the song is Leave Out All the Rest by Linkin Park, there's a link to a video on my profile! :)**


	6. Introducing

**A/N Thank you all sooo much for reviewing, I love it! I sincerely hope you will continue. I love hearing your opinions, and I always respond when possible. (meaning, if your PMs are enabled and you left a signed reply.)**

**Much thanks to my Beta, Sunflower3759, for keeping me from confusing all of you. :)**

**Disclaimer: I, to my eternal regret, do not own Twilight. But who cares? I'm just screwing it all up anyway, lol.**

* * *

Introducing

Keeping to their promise, the Cullens did not approach us during the next week. They did not speak to us, and none but Jasper; his mate, Alice; and, to my surprise, Edward, even looked at us. I had a feeling this had more to do with the fact that I was so tense; there was no way we were at all interesting to them. If I had not been so anxious, it would have been extremely humorous. Jasper always looked as if he wanted to know why I was so constantly on edge, and Edward always looked frustrated, as if he was grasping for something, and missing it.

On Monday, gears were turning in my head all day. Apparently noticing my preoccupation, no one at school attempted to speak with me. Even Charlie and Nio left me alone with my thoughts; though once in a while my brother did interject his own ideas on our problem, which was getting completely out of hand.

The vampires that Brant had warned us about were getting worse. After their exploits in Hoquiam and Aberdeen, they kept moving north, parallel to the west coast of Washington, killing people in Wishkah, Humptulips, Taholah, Amanda Park, Queets, and Clearwater. Now, they were headed toward Oil City, and then, we believed, to Forks.

In every city, their feedings grew ever more blatant, drawing more and more attention, and causing Nio and me to become more and more concerned. We had come to the conclusion that this was not only one vampire, but a group of vampires, as there were often multiple bite points on the victims' bodies, but still no one could catch them. Brant sent more crime scene photos and autopsy reports nearly every day, and I began to become more and more agitated and edgy.

Nio and I had done everything short of hunting the rogue vampires down ourselves, with no luck. Sitting by and doing nothing did not sit well with me. Reading the reports and looking at the photographs was depressing me. This, mixed with my apprehension, was not a pleasant or healthy combination. Every day it became more difficult to contain my emotions, while attempting to ignore everyone else's.

My ability to take away a person's emotions was linked to my own. I had to be control of my emotions at all times, or risk harming someone. Knowing that these vampires were murdering innocents and risking the exposure of the supernatural world just to get to me was making this more difficult every day, but I did not lose control. That is, until Wednesday.

Nio and I had arrived early at school, and were getting our backpacks out of my truck, when Brant texted me.

"**Check email. Now."**

I was both apprehensive and reluctant to do so, knowing there would be more photos, but I knew I had no real choice in the matter. It was my job to stop these murders from happening, and I could not do that without being informed.

Nio and I sat down on the bed of the truck. I pulled my laptop out of my backpack and turned it on. Immediately, my email indicator flashed. I opened the latest email from Brant and clicked on the link to the crime scene and autopsy information. The first photograph was of the victim on the autopsy table; it was much like the others, a dead, sixteen-year-old girl who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The second photograph, though, nearly stopped my heart.

It was of the same girl, but at the crime scene. She was lying face down in some alley down in Oil City. Her shirt was cut in half and pulled to the side to reveal an intricate pattern on her back. Unfortunately, it was not a tattoo. The vampires, or at least one of them, had sliced her back open. This alone would have been enough to shock me profusely, but there was one other thing that factored into my alarm.

The cuts on the victims back were identical to the scars on mine.

Nio cursed, but I just froze. I was afraid that if I moved, I would lose control, and that could not happen. Nio caught on quickly, and stayed silent after his outburst, setting my laptop aside, and watching me warily. Suddenly, I heard someone call my name.

I looked around, and the only other people in the parking lot were the Cullens, who had just pulled in and gotten out of their car. I concentrated on figuring out which one had called my name, and realized ruefully that I knew without a doubt who had _not_ called my name. I had grown ridiculously attuned to Edward's voice over the past month or so, and would recognize it anywhere.

A moment later, I heard my name again. To my surprise, it was the pixie girl, Alice, who had called out. Almost as if she knew I needed the distraction. I nodded my thanks, and turned to Nio. He looked worried.

"_Are you okay, Iz?"_ He asked.

"_That is a loaded question."_ I replied. My control was quickly slipping away again. I closed my eyes and pressed my fingers against my temples. It did not help at all.

"_I think you need to leave, sis."_ Nio said apprehensively.

"_Yeah, I know."_ I responded. I was wondering if my truck was fast enough when Nio spoke again.

"_Then go."_ He said, calm for the first time. Confused, I opened my eyes, and saw that he was handing me the key to his motorcycle.

"_Are you sure?"_ I asked. _"I know how much you love your that thing."_

"_Take it,"_ He answered, _"just make sure you return it in one piece."_ He managed a small smile.

I took my key to the truck out of my pocket and gave it to him, swapping it for the motorcycle key. As I turned toward the bike, I reeled. I was losing control, fast.

"Go, Bella!" Nio exclaimed aloud.

I yanked his bike out of the bed of the truck; kick started it, and peeled out of the parking lot, refusing to look back.

* * *

**Tony Swan**

As Izzy screeched out of the parking lot on my bike, the Cullens walked over to where I was standing. Edward was staring after her like a lovesick canary, and the others were looking at me. Emmett, the big one, spoke first.

"What the hell was that?" He asked rather bluntly. If I wasn't so worried about my sister, I would have laughed.

"That," I replied, "was an extremely dangerous situation." They stared blankly back at me.

"I felt her agitation," Jasper ventured, "it has been increasing exponentially over the past few days. I am actually surprised she did not have a meltdown sooner. But how was that dangerous?"

I sighed; it was not really my place to tell them about Izzy's abilities, but we could not keep ignoring their questions. Suddenly, I felt her in my mind.

"_Tell them."_ She said simply, and then she was gone. I was unsure whether she had been listening the whole time, or simply guessed that the Cullens would have questions, but I decided to do as she said. I turned to Jasper.

"Are you influential?" I asked. He gave me a confused look, so I rephrased.

"I mean your empathetic abilities; can you manipulate people's emotions?"

The light bulb flashed in his eyes, and he answered. "Yes; why?"

I ran my hand through my hair, still slightly uncomfortable divulging this information without Izzy present.

"Izzy is what we call a non-influential empath," I explained, "meaning she can sense the emotions of others, but cannot influence them. She can, however, control people's emotions in a different way." Here I grew reluctant. This was the part that freaked most people out, and with super-naturals, this could be tricky territory.

"She can take away someone's emotions completely," I said hesitantly, "and her subconscious controls much of this ability." As I expected, jaws hit the ground. Jasper looked completely shell-shocked.

"I cannot even imagine." He said.

"I can." I replied, wincing. They looked shocked all over again.

"Has she ever done it to you?" Rosalie asked, narrowing her eyes. My eyes widened.

"No!" I exclaimed, shocked. "She would rather die than do that to me; or anyone else, if I am being honest. She has, however, been forced to strip away her own emotions before."

"Why would she do that to herself?" Alice asked incredulously. To my intense surprise, Edward answered before I could.

"No, it makes sense." He said. Alice looked at him like he was crazy. He sighed.

"Antonio said that she is not in complete control of the ability," he explained, "and that she hates using it." He turned to me.

"Her abilities to feel and strip emotions are connected, am I correct?" He asked. I raised my eyebrows and nodded.

"Nicely deduced." I commented. He turned to speak to Alice again, but she interrupted.

"Why did you have to ask?" She looked at him with curiosity. Edward grimaced, which made the others laugh.

"You can't hear his thoughts either, can you?" Rosalie asked smugly. He grimaced again, and it was my turn to laugh.

"You are a mind reader?" I asked him. He nodded.

"I cannot figure out why yours and Bella's thoughts are blocked from me." He said, frustrated.

I smiled. "You can't hear our thoughts because Bella is a shield." I said. Edward and his family just stared, clearly confused.

"A shield is someone with an ability that is solely defensive," I clarified, "Bella's shield protects her from any sort of mental interference."

"Than why can Jasper feel her emotions and Alice see her future?" Edward inquired.

"Her shield doesn't protect against talents that deal in the physical, which is probably why Jasper's ability works on her. He feels what the body, not the mind, is feeling. As for Alice's ability, you are a psychic?" I confirmed.

"Yep," she replied cheerfully, "don't try to sneak up on me." I shrugged at this.

"Creepy." I commented, holding back a grin. Alice laughed, and I continued.

"Anyway, psychics see the future, which is determined by decisions that have already been made. Once the action has been planned, it is no longer simply an idea, and therefore not wholly inside the mind."

"That does not explain why I cannot hear your thoughts." Edward commented.

"Bella and I share a mental connection that allows her to shield me as well. Our minds are joined in a way that lets us speak to each other telepathically, feel what the other is feeling, and share any mental abilities."

"So that's why you two stare at each other all the time!" Emmett exclaimed.

"Do we really?" I asked. "Usually we are doing something else, so that the humans don't catch on, or so I thought."

"Nah," Emmett laughed, "I was just trying to diffuse the tension."

"Nice Job." I replied, laughing with him. Meanwhile, Edward looked thoughtful

"At least I understand now," he sighed, "unfortunately, understanding makes it no less frustrating."

"No, it doesn't." I said, laughing again.

"So back to our original subject," Alice interjected, turning to Edward, "you were explaining your reasoning about Bella stripping her own emotions."

"Right," he said, "I was thinking that she most likely took away her own emotions to keep herself from doing the same to someone else." They all turned to me for confirmation.

"You are correct," I said, staring at Edward curiously, "if she had not been able to get away just now, she would have had to strip away her own emotions, which is even more dangerous than taking others', to avoid hurting everyone within a five mile radius."

"Why is taking her own emotions away more dangerous than taking someone else's?" Rosalie inquired.

"Because when you have no emotions, you care about nothing," I explained carefully, "you have the knowledge that something is a bad idea, or would normally upset you, but it does not matter, and with Izzy's abilities, this is a very sticky situation. Most of the time, she can control it, and stop herself from doing something stupid. Without your emotions, though, you basically have no will. She has to be convinced to even turn her emotions back on."

"But if you have no will, wouldn't you just sit there like a vegetable?" Emmett asked.

Again, I had to laugh.

"Not exactly," I replied, "there has been only one other person in our remembered history who has possessed this power, and the people she used it against inspired so much fear in the human race, they remain embedded in their psyche today."

"Really? What are they?" Emmett asked eagerly. I hesitated before answering.

"Zombies." I answered. Emmett laughed, and then stopped suddenly, realizing no one else was.

"You're serious." He stated.

"Yeah," I sighed, "I am. Obviously their skin doesn't decay, they don't really want to eat brains, and the human ones die when their bodies do. However, the mindless wondering around, killing anyone they come across; that's real. They have no control, and the only reason Izzy does is that she knows what is happening, and that she should base her decisions on her knowledge, not her emotions, or lack thereof."

"Wow." Emmett stated.

"Yeah, I know," I said, "It is a lot to take in." Just then, the bell rang, and we all looked around, realizing the parking lot was now full.

"Well, I suppose we should all go to class." Jasper commented.

"Yes," I agreed, "but first, I do not believe I have met any of you properly." I extended my hand.

"I'm Tony Swan."

* * *

**Alice Cullen**

We pulled up to the school early, which was odd. As fast as Edward always drove, we were always on time, but never early. I had a feeling I knew why. Sure enough, as I looked around the only other vehicle in the parking lot was Bella's truck. I rolled my eyes and sent Edward a thought.

"_This is getting ridiculous, you know."_ He narrowed his eyes and snarled under his breath. The others looked at him like he was insane, while I bit my lip to keep from laughing.

We all stepped out of the car, and I saw that Bella was looking down at her cell phone with a reluctant but resigned expression on her face. Jasper sighed.

"Here we go again." He said. I looked over at him, confused.

"What do you mean?" I asked. He just shrugged. I glanced at Edward, who was looking at Jasper, frowning.

"Bella has been getting more and more agitated every day," Edward explained, "and it is always after she gets a text or email. It is starting to grate on Jasper's nerves." I turned to Jazz.

"I am pretty sure it is not her fault, Jazz." I reasoned.

"I know that," he replied, "I am not irritated with her, I am irritated with whatever is making her so edgy." I looked back at Bella and Tony, and saw that they were now sitting on the bed of Bella's truck, looking at her computer.

I turned to walk into the school, and noticed that Edward was, -big surprise-, staring at Bella. I rolled my eyes again, and Edward threw me a glare. I was about to continue toward the building, when I, and then Edward, froze.

I saw the parking lot, as if through a camera lens. Bella and Tony were still sitting on her truck, but something was wrong. Bella suddenly froze, and her pupils dilated, completely eradicating the whites of her eyes.

I blinked, and was back to the present. I was about to shout and warn Bella, but my vision was already happening.

Tony suddenly cursed, and then froze as well, only moving to grab Bella's laptop, set it aside, and look at her warily. He looked almost afraid of her.

Worried about what might happen, I called her name softly. Her head snapped up. She was looking at us, presumably trying to figure out which of us had said her name. I called her name again, seeing that this would help her calm down a bit, and she looked at me with surprise.

She nodded, as if to thank me, and turned back to her brother; she seemed to be struggling again. I turned to Jasper.

"What is wrong with her?" I asked.

"Her emotions finally became too much for her." He said, his expression sympathetic. Bella was now pressing her fingers against her temples.

Suddenly, Antonio got a determined look on his face. He pulled a set of keys out of his pocket, and extended his hand. Bella looked unsure about something. Tony smiled, and Bella took his keys, and gave Tony hers.

As she turned toward the back of her truck, she staggered. Jasper hissed.

"She's losing it." He said, gritting his teeth.

Suddenly, Tony shouted. "Go, Bella!"

Bella jerked Tony's motorcycle out of the back of her truck, swung her leg over, kick-started it, and zoomed out of the parking lot. Edward stared after her, a concerned look on his face.

"We should go see what is wrong." I suggested.

Jazz nodded, Em and Rose just shrugged, and Edward continued to stare. We all walked over to Tony and Emmett, never one to beat around the bush, spoke first.

"What the hell was that?" He asked, apparently opting for the direct approach. Not that this came as any surprise to us.

Ice broken, Tony, albeit hesitantly, began his explanations.

Afterward, we introduced ourselves, Tony having pointed out that none of us had been properly introduced.

Tony had begun staring at Edward after he guessed the reason for Bella's self-impairment, and was still staring, though he tried to stop. He looked as if he was attempting to figure Edward out, and it was not working. Suddenly, he smirked.

"Bella's getting under your skin just as much as you are getting under hers, isn't she?" He asked.

The rest of us answered with a unanimous "Yes" and Edward scowled. Tony laughed.

"Don't worry," he said, "you will both get over it eventually."

"Yes," Edward replied sarcastically, "we will simply 'get over' the incessant desire to kill one another." Tony rolled his eyes.

"Of course not," he said, "it is impossible to erase your very nature, but the more you get used to Bella's scent, and the more Bella gets used to her defensive reaction to you, the easier it will be to control yourselves." Edward's eyes narrowed.

"What do you mean 'defensive'?" He asked.

"Um…defensive?" Tony said, turning the word into a question.

"Maybe a different question would be wise;" Edward said, "How exactly does Bella's emotion-seizing ability work?" Tony considered this for a moment before answering.

"I suppose that, though it would be technically classified as an offensive talent, it is actually largely defensive. If I wanted to sound cliché, I would say that 'the best defense is a good offense'. The more dangerous a person is to Bella, the more her subconscious will want to get rid of that danger, and so the stronger her reaction to that person will be. The fact that she can feel all of their animosity and desire to kill her just makes it worse." Edward bridled at this.

"So you are saying that this is my fault." He spat angrily.

"No," Tony replied calmly, "but you _did_ want to kill her, yes?" Edward winced at this.

"It is not your fault that you react to her scent more strongly than anyone else's, anymore than it is her fault that she was born smelling the way she does. It is just the way things are, and there is nothing anyone can do about it."

"My apologies," Edward sighed, "everything seems to set me off more easily these days."

Tony chuckled. "Don't worry, you aren't the only one." He said, smirking to himself. The warning bell for first period rang, and we all hurried to our classes. I had a feeling that Saturday would be extremely interesting.

* * *

**Bella Swan**

After I had regained my self-control, Nio showed me what had transpired with the Cullens. I was surprised that it was Edward who guessed my motives for stripping my emotions correctly. I was also surprised that their family had so many who were gifted with talents beyond the norm, like Nio and me. A mind-reader, a psychic, and an empath; it was quite impressive; almost half of their family possessed some extra abilities.

After some consideration, and after speaking with Nio, I decided that it was time for me to search for the rouge vampires myself. Nio wanted to come with me, but I thought it best that he stayed in Forks. He would watch for the vampires in town, in case they slipped by me and my men, and would allow me a connection to the town, so that I could keep track of the goings on there.

I asked Nio to tell the Cullens that I would return in time for our meeting on Saturday, but would most likely miss school for the rest of the week. He complied, and my men and I began our search.

We started Thursday morning in Oil City, where the last girl was killed, and came up empty. I was not surprised; I certainly did not expect the murderers to stay in town.

We continued searching for the vampires throughout Washington, and still could not find them. I began to worry; it was not like they were running from us, but as if they had simply disappeared. We could find no trace of them, though the evidence of their previous visit was still there.

Our search lasted until Saturday morning, when I was finally forced to relinquish the duties to others, and travel back to Forks for the meeting with the Cullens.

I arrived at eleven o'clock in the evening, and decided to go strait to the meeting place, though we were not supposed to meet the Cullens until around one A.M. My piano was there, and I desperately needed to play.

Playing helped me sort through my thoughts, and was useful as an emotional channel that would not hurt anyone. It worked best when I was composing a new piece, but helped even if I was playing an old song or something someone else wrote.

Nio was sleeping, so I blocked our connection, as I did not want to wake him.

I reached my destination, and went straight to my piano. I sat for a moment, examining my emotions, and working out the reasons for them in my head.

Finally, I let them flow freely, channeling their energy into my music. The song that followed was melancholic due to my recent failure to find the rogue vampires, as well as my memories of their victims.

My thoughts then turned to the meeting with the Cullens in a few hours, and much to my surprise, the tenor of my emotions became much more positive. A new composition entered my mind, and I followed it through, not paying much attention to the emotions fuelling it until I realized the reason for them.

I immediately stopped playing; this was one song I could not finish.

"_You're afraid!"_ Nio exclaimed. I jumped, surprised, and looked at the clock on the wall. It was about twelve-thirty, which meant he had woken up half an hour ago, and had apparently been eavesdropping the entire time. I gritted my teeth.

"_Afraid of what, exactly?"_ I spat. This merely proved him right, as I was almost never cross with him.

"_Of admitting your feelings for Edward."_ He replied.

"_What!"_ I shouted, _"That is absolutely ridiculous!"_

He snorted. _"Oh please, Izzy, you are just lucky Jasper hasn't figured it out yet; he will eventually, you know."_ I hissed, startling him, and was instantly mortified at myself.

"_Izzy,"_ he said gently, _"stop running from yourself; this does not have to be a bad thing."_

"_It is too dangerous,"_ I disagreed, _"for all parties involved."_

"_Well, you are halfway to accepting your feelings for him, that's a start."_ He replied. I growled in frustration.

"_This is not a game!"_ I exclaimed angrily. _"I cannot hurt him!"_

"_Exactly!"_ Nio shouted triumphantly. _"You said 'cannot' not 'should not' or 'don't want to'. Stop thinking so hard and just let yourself feel, like you were when you were playing that last song."_

"_It is not that simple, Nio."_ I sighed.

"_Well think a little, then."_ He replied. _"What are the reasons for what you feel for Edward?"_

"_That is the problem!"_ I exclaimed. _"There are no reasons; it's all just madness, running around in my head."_

"_Well, maybe there is a reason for that,"_ he said, _"there does not always have to be a reason for your emotions, Sis; sometimes it is healthy to let go."_

"_I can't,"_ I replied, _"when I let go, awful things happen."_

"_You said it yourself, Iz, you can't hurt him. How do you think you would feel if you did?"_

I thought about this, and immediately froze. I was shocked by the intensity of my reaction; my body locked up, and my mind all but shut down, completely rejecting the thought, not just of me hurting Edward, but of him being hurt at all.

"_Wow."_ Nio's one-word response pretty much summed it up. It took me a moment to calm down again.

"_This is about to get complicated."_ I sighed.

"_Why?"_ Nio asked. _"It isn't as if you two are related. There is no law preventing you two from being together, and you two sure as hell aren't Romeo and Juliet. Why does it have to be complicated?"_

"_Do you really have to ask?"_ I asked sarcastically.

"_You deserve to be happy, too, Iz."_ He said gently.

"_Thanks, Nio,"_ I sighed, _"but it will still be complicated."_

He chuckled. _"Maybe,"_ he agreed, _"but you should finish that song, you haven't played like that in a long time."_

"_Not tonight,"_ I replied, _"besides, we are meeting with the Cullens in five minutes."_ I paused.

"_Speaking of which, where are you?"_

"_On my way,"_ He said, _"I am actually listening for the Cullens, I just realized that there may be too many scents around for them to pick out ours, though Edward could probably manage, since he is so attuned to yours."_

"_Ha Ha, very funny."_ I commented dryly, rolling my eyes. Suddenly, Nio cursed, and I felt him begin to run faster.

"_Nio, what's wrong? What's happened?"_ I asked frantically.

"_I hear the Quileute shape-shifters,"_ he explained hurriedly, _"They've caught a scent, and they're hunting. I'd bet anything it's the Cullens."_ It was my turn to curse.

"_I'm on my way."_ I said.

This was going to be a very long night.

* * *

**A/N Cliffie! I know, you all hate me, but I promise the next chapter is Awesome!**

**Speaking of which, I'm really sorry, but I'm afraid I lied to you. I was definitely writing the next chapter, completely expecting to finally reveal what Bella and Tony are. But sometimes this story writes itself, and it now has to wait one more chapter, because the next one became too long. I am now completely positive you all hate me, but I promise you one thing: there is absolutely no possible way that the anticipated explanation will not be in chapter 8. Sooooo Sorry :( Didn't mean to disappoint all of my faithful readers.**

**Review Please, even if it's hate reviews for the cliff hanger, I love hearing from you guys! I love constructive criticism.**

**Did anyone get the hint I dropped about Tony? Haha, review and let me know :)**


	7. Convincing

**A/N Thank you to everyone who is reviewing! I love You! Please keep it up!**

**Thanks to my Beta, Sunflower3759, for keeping me on track :)**

**I am soooo sorry it has taken me so long to update. I had this ridiculous 6 week writing intensive course that allowed me no time to even think about anything else, let alone write. I am back now, and hopefully will be updating at least once every other week.**

* * *

**Convincing**

As I ran toward the snarling sounds echoing through the woods, I wondered what had caused the Quileutes to come here today. I last spoke with Sam around two weeks ago, and he had demanded explanations. I asked him to come last week, but he never showed up.

If this was just a normal argument between families, I would not be so concerned, but the Quileutes who had cornered the Cullens were the most recent in a long bloodline of Shape-shifters. These particular shifters transformed into giant wolves, and happened to have a long-standing animosity toward vampires.

They valued human life above all else, and so hated everything about vampires. They tolerated the Cullens because they only fed on animals, but still refused to send their people to the hospital because Carlisle worked there. In my opinion, it had become an issue of prejudice more than anything else.

As I sped toward the quarrel, I felt Nio arrive. He was now attempting to talk Sam and the rest of the pack down, at the same time speaking to me.

"_Iz, you need to get here, now. I'm only delaying them, they're still after blood."_

"_I'm almost there,"_ I assured him, _"but I'm coming in silent."_

When I arrived, both parties were standing next to the river, facing each other. Nio was facing the river, closer to the Cullens on his left, with his head turned toward Sam, reasoning with him. I hid a few yards back from the edge of the clearing and listened.

"They're vegetarians, Sam," he said, "they don't hunt humans, and they haven't set foot on your lands, why are you doing this?" Apparently still angry, Sam growled, and Edward responded.

"We are not trying to kill Tony and Bella," he said, "we are simply here to meet with them." Sam did not seem to believe him.

"_The wolves are getting restless, what are you waiting for?"_ Nio asked.

He was right, and the situation was getting more intense than I liked, so I prepared to intervene.

"_Any time now, Iz."_ He said urgently.

"_One more second."_ I replied.

I closed my eyes, took a moment to clear my mind, steeled myself, stood tall, and walked calmly out into the clearing to stand next to Nio.

This was most definitely going to be a long night.

* * *

**Edward Cullen**

After Bella left on Wednesday, the week went by sluggishly. I was shocked at how much I had been looking forward to seeing her every day; it was extremely unnerving.

Saturday dawned with much apprehension, at least for me. Everyone else seemed perfectly at ease, though they were thinking about the meeting quite a bit.

Carlisle and Jasper were wondering if Bella and Tony had solved their problem, Esme was wondering if she should bring some food, Emmett was wondering how boring the meeting would be, and Alice was wondering what Bella would be wearing. The only person who was not thinking about them was Rosalie, and that simply was not helping me, as she was daydreaming about her next hunting trip alone with Emmett.

I was so irritated by the incessant mental chatter about Bella and Tony; I was compelled to answer their thoughts just to quiet them. It all came out in a rush.

"Carlisle and Jasper; there is nothing you can do about it, so stop worrying about it. Esme; that most likely is not a good idea; they are not human, they may not even eat. Emmett and Alice; really, who cares? And Rosalie; stop, just stop."

I relished the momentary mental silence caused by everyone's shock. Soon enough, however; it began again. This time, there were worries about, and sometimes even direct questions to, me. I really did not appreciate this, either. I sighed.

"I think I need to go hunt." I informed them.

"Make sure you return in time for the meeting in a few hours." Carlisle said, concerned.

"Of course." I replied. I turned to leave.

"Wait, I'll come too." Alice said, stopping me.

"Not today, Alice." I sighed. She changed tactics, sending deliberate thoughts, instead.

"_I saw something you want to know about,"_ she said, _"I can tell you here, but you will definitely want to process this one alone."_ She was so infuriating! I growled under my breath.

"Fine." I said shortly. I knew I was not being fair, she was only trying to help. If only she were not so annoying. Jasper, of course, immediately insisted on tagging along. I sighed again, mentally exhausted and unwilling to argue anymore.

We left, and began running to a section of the woods that we knew often had deer roaming through it. On the way, she showed me what she had seen. I stopped in my tracks, causing Alice to skid to a stop three hundred yards away and prance back to me.

She had seen a vision of me with Bella; we were laughing about something. Considering the current state of affairs, this was surprising enough, but what shocked me most was what I felt when I saw the vision.

Behind the shock and surprise, I was happy, ecstatic even, to see Bella laughing. I had never realized it before, but laughing was not something Bella often did. Even when she laughed at Emmett in Spanish class, it felt as if she were doing it for his benefit. The only time I had ever heard her truly laugh was at her appointment with Carlisle. I now recognized with shock the immense satisfaction I had felt when I made her laugh. This was getting ridiculous.

"Wow," Jasper said, "you have some strong feelings for her." This caused Alice to laugh; her face excited. I snarled.

"Not true." I said, gritting my teeth.

"Oh don't be an infant, Edward," she said, rolling her eyes, "It isn't the end of the world. You aren't the first person to have feelings for someone, and you certainly won't be the last."

"So why are you making such a big deal out of it?" I growled. Alice clapped her hands.

"I knew it!" She exclaimed, jumping up and down.

"Ugh!" I shouted, exasperated, "Why are you acting like this is a good thing?"

"Why are you acting like this is a bad thing?" She retorted.

"Because I do _not_ want to kill her!" I screamed. Jasper sent a wave of calm toward me, and I attempted to relax somewhat. Alice's face softened.

"Edward, you've been alone for so long that you can't even see that you're missing something. Maybe you should get to know Bella. You never know, she could be your other half." I snorted.

"Aren't you being a bit dramatic, Alice?" I asked. "You cannot possibly know if she is my 'other half'".

"I did say 'could be'" she said, "and you're right, I don't know. What I do know is that you won't know unless you give it a shot."

I sighed and scowled into the distance. They were silent with me for a few moments.

"Not to be rude," I said, "but since I will have to be around Bella later, I really do need to hunt." Sensing that she had gotten as far as she could with me tonight, Alice bowed out gracefully.

"Of course," she replied, "you should be fine either way, though, and that I _do_ know." She grinned and pranced away, dragging an extremely curious and amused Jasper with her.

When I was at last alone with my own thoughts, I sat on a rock to think. If I was being honest with myself, I had developed feelings for Bella when I first began speaking with her. I simply had not admitted those feelings to anyone, least of all myself, until Alice confronted me.

I knew she would keep this information to herself until I was ready for the rest of my family to know, though a few of them had most likely already guessed. I had no idea what I was going to do with this information. I knew a small portion of her past, and I knew she was not human, but other than that, she was a mystery to me. I supposed I would just have to wait and see what her explanations revealed, and go from there.

Realizing that my inner musings were doing me no good, I decided to catch a deer or two before I had to meet with the rest of my family. About thirty minutes later, we rendezvoused at a clearing and followed Tony's directions toward the place we were to meet with the Swans.

We were running along the river when we caught a peculiar scent.

"Ugh, what is that awful smell?" Rosalie asked, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

We all stopped, sniffing the air, trying to figure out what we were smelling. I could hear someone's thoughts, and their owners were coming toward us. I informed my family.

"How many?" Carlisle asked, ever practical.

"I can't tell," I replied, creasing my brow, "I can hear individual thoughts, but they are all connected somehow, which is making it impossible to tell how many there are."

"It sounds like a pack of some kind of animal." Esme commented. I frowned.

"But they have the thoughts of humans." I said, confused.

"I suppose we will just have to wait and see." Carlisle said, resigned.

We did not have to wait long. In a matter of minutes, a pack of giant wolves bounded out of the trees, snarling at us. We all immediately stepped back and took defensive stances.

Every one of them was furious. All I could decipher from their thoughts was an extreme hatred toward us. The big, black one who I believed was the leader, growled, and they fanned out, attempting to surround us.

None of us understood what was happening. Esme was frightened, Carlisle confused, and everyone was readying themselves for a fight. There were eight of them, but we were all older and more experienced; it was possible for us to win this.

Just as the wolves crouched down to leap at us, a figure flew out of the forest. It was Tony.

"Sam, what the hell is this?" He asked, speaking to the black one. He just snarled.

"They're vegetarians, Sam," he said, "they don't hunt humans, and they haven't set foot on your lands; why are you doing this?" Sam just growled, and I finally understood something of his thoughts. I spoke.

"We are not trying to kill Tony and Bella," I said, "we are simply here to meet with them." He did not believe me, and snarled again.

I saw Tony glance toward the forest where he had just appeared. He seemed to be waiting for something. I did not have to wait long to see what he was waiting for. Or rather, who.

We all turned as Bella walked calmly out of the forest. She wore completely different clothing than she wore to school. She had on form-fitting cloth shorts, a shirt I could not see much of because of the thin, short-sleeved cover-up she had on, and shoes that fit close to her feet. If I remembered correctly, these shoes were normally used by rock-climbers, to allow their feet free mobility so that they could easily grip the rocks.

All-in-all, she was dressed very casually, but she was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I had never before realized just how much the clothes she wore to school were meant to hide her. I already knew that she was slender, but had never before been able to see how muscular she was. Her muscles were lean, not masculine at all, but they were very much defined. If I had to guess, her abdominal muscles probably were as well. I shook my head, trying to dispel my daydreams about Bella's body, and focused on the current situation.

Bella, with an unexpected air of regality, had come to stand next to Tony, and was about to speak.

* * *

**Bella Swan**

As I stopped next to my brother, I knew I needed to speak immediately and diffuse the tension.

"What seems to be the problem here, boys?" I said, addressing the Quileutes. It pained me to be in the middle of a confrontation with them. I counted many of them as brothers, and was even related by blood to a few.

Sam growled, and I narrowed my eyes.

"Really Sam, you know I cannot hear you. At least do me the courtesy of making this a two-way conversation." Sam shook his big head back and forth in disagreement.

The pack shared a connection similar to my connection with Nio. When they were in wolf form, their thoughts were connected, which was extremely useful for hunting. This made it difficult for me to distinguish who was feeling what. At the moment, I thought that at least two were unsure about the whole situation.

"Sam, they mean no one any harm; you have no reason to attack them." I said. I felt the uncertainty become determination, and two of the wolves, a sandy-colored one and reddish-brown one, leapt away from the pack, and into the trees. Sam snarled, but they ignored them, and in a moment, Jacob Black and Seth Clearwater came into view.

Jacob's father, Billy, was Charlie's best friend. Ironically, though, he was also the one who asked us to leave Forks. I had no idea if Jacob or any of the pack knew this. Jacob was about two years younger than Nio and me, and if I remembered correctly, had just turned sixteen. He had been a good friend when Nio and I moved here, but I did not know how he felt about us now, knowing what we were.

I used to babysit Seth when his sister, Leah, was gone. I always loved seeing him; he was a sweet kid, and one of the most genuine people I had ever met, which was rare in a fourteen-year old boy. It was a great change from all of the selfish teenagers at my school, but I also had the same problem with not knowing where I stood with him now. Since Sam already knew what we were, the rest of the pack had to know also, seeing as they were all connected.

As they walked over to us though, I felt only happiness from them. They smiled warmly, hugged me, and clapped Nio on the shoulder. Sam growled, outraged, along with a smaller, grey wolf. No doubt they saw them and us as traitors. Seth and Jacob turned toward him, and Jacob spoke first.

"Sam, this is getting ridiculous," he said, "it was a misunderstanding. Let it go." Sam snarled again, albeit more quietly.

"Come on, Sam," Seth interjected, "Bella's always been like a sister to you; you used to trust her, and we still do."

I was worried that this would only make him angrier, but my fears were groundless. Sam looked at me for a moment, and I allowed my face to soften, letting him know I was only being cold because I had to.

He barked an order, and he and the rest of the pack leapt into the trees. In a few moments, five teenage boys and one girl walked out. I recognized a few of them. Quil Ateara V and Embry Call were Jacob's best friends, so Nio and I knew them fairly well and always got along with them. They were slightly suspicious of us now, but they trusted Jake, and counted us among their friends. I sensed they were simply trying to cope with the situation at the moment.

I also recognized Leah Clearwater, Seth's older sister. We had always gotten along, but she was an extremely suspicious person, and I could feel waves of anger rolling off of her. There were two more males I did not recognize, and, of course, Sam.

Though it seemed he was willing to hear me out, I felt a deep sense of betrayal emanating from him. When he and the rest stopped just short of us, he stayed silent. It seemed I would be the first to speak.

"What have I done to betray you, Sam?" I asked. "The Cullens have done nothing to warrant this attack; I cannot let you harm the innocent."

Growing angry, he spat his answer. "They pose a threat to every human they come in contact with."

"Yes, they do," I replied, "but not as much as you think. They have a reverence for human life rarely seen in their race; they take every precaution they can so that they will not harm any humans."

Unwilling to give in, Sam continued. "They still feed on blood; it's an abomination!" He exclaimed. I felt a few of the Cullens bridle at this, and to be honest, so did I. My next words held some slight resentment.

"So do I, Sam," I retorted, "and so does Nio."

"That's different," Sam protested, "you two were born the way you are. They—

"They what Sam?" I interrupted, slightly angry at this point. "You think they chose this? You think anyone in their right mind would _choose_ to spend three days in excruciating pain, just so they can live forever?" I closed my eyes, and forced myself to calm down.

"The supernatural world is a lonely one, Sam;" I continued softly, "no one chooses this. And I would bet you anything that none of the Cullens are any different. You knew what we were before we left. It did not stop you from counting us among your friends. What changed, Sam? You were always a brother to me."

Sam was speechless for a moment. He knew his words had hurt me, and he regretted it. He looked at the Cullens for a moment, and became determined about something. When he spoke again, he used the native language of the Quileutes, apparently not wanting the Cullens to understand what he was saying.

"Nothing's changed, Bella." He said. "I suppose it was easier for me to accept you because I already knew you. I trust you, and if you trust them, I will give them the benefit of the doubt." He narrowed his eyes. "But if they take any human life, they will answer to us." He said darkly.

"Not if we get to them first." I replied, also in the Quileute language. "Thank you, Sam, your trust means a lot to me." I switched back to English.

"How much did Billy tell you about why we left?" I asked. They all looked at me blankly.

"He did not tell you anything, did he?" I asked, growing angry. It was Jacob who replied.

"What would my father know about you leaving?" He asked, curious. I took a moment to calm myself before answering.

"He is the one who asked us to leave." I answered reluctantly. Sam became confused, and Jake angry.

"Why would he do that?" They asked simultaneously.

"He was scared of us." I said sadly. "He was doing what he believed was right for his people."

Jake snorted. "That's crap, he knows you two would never hurt anyone." He said. "I think I'm going to have to have a talk with him when I get home."

This sparked an idea in my head. I decided to run it by Sam and Jake.

"Actually, I know someone better who could talk to him." I said.

"Who?" Sam asked, confused.

"His grandmother." I replied, amused. All of the Quileutes' jaws dropped.

"Mihaela's still alive?" Jake asked incredulously.

"Of course," I replied, "she's like Nio and I. Actually, she's our great-grandmother too."

"So you two are Quileutes?" Sam asked.

"No," I answered, "Mihaela had a daughter, Marie, before she met Ephraim. Her husband died before she moved here. Marie was my grandmother, and the half sister of Jake's grandfather."

"Wow," Seth commented, "so you and Jake are what, eighth cousins?"

I laughed. "Third cousins, actually," I replied, "and Quil is our first cousin."

Once again, all of them were in complete shock. Finally, Quil found his voice.

"How is that even possible?" He asked. I sighed, and launched into another complicated explanation.

"After our grandfather died, Marie had a daughter with another man, whom she never married. She kept this a secret from Charlie; he had a sister he never knew about. She married your father, Quil IV."

"Wait a minute," Sam interjected, "I thought you were adopted."

"We were," Nio answered, "but when we were sixteen, Izzy was at the doctor's office after the… incident, and through some kind of blood-work I didn't understand, we found out that we were biologically related to Renee, which meant that she and Charlie were our biological parents. Charlie knows, but Renee doesn't. It would be a little overwhelming for her."

"Wow," Seth commented, "your lives aren't complicated at all, are they?"

Nio and I smiled, and answered simultaneously. "Always."

"Does my grandpa know?" Quil asked.

"Honestly, I do not know," I replied, "Billy knew, so I suppose it depends on if he told the rest of the elders.

Quil nodded. "Do you mind if I tell him?" He asked.

"Not at all," I replied, "that part, at least, is your story as much as ours, after all."

"Thank you." He said sincerely.

"Of course." Nio said.

"What's family for, anyway, if not sharing deep, dark secrets?" I added, winking at Quil.

He laughed, and all of the shifters seemed to relax at once.

"Thank you, Bella, Nio," Sam said, "it helps to understand what's going on."

"Anytime," Nio answered, "you know us, always ready to diffuse family brawls."

The Quileutes all laughed, and then ran swiftly back into the forest, heading home. I turned to the Cullens.

"My sincerest apologies," I said, "I asked them to come last week; I had no idea they would come here tonight."

"It's quite alright," Carlisle assured, "I am simply glad no one was hurt."

"As am I." I replied. "Seeing as I have only met three of you, I may as well introduce myself. I am Bella Swan."

It was Esme who answered me. "It's lovely to meet you, Bella. I am Esme, Carlisle's wife; and this is Alice, Rosalie, and Emmett." She pointed to each one as she said their names.

"And of course, you've met Jasper and Edward." She said.

"It is a pleasure to meet you all," I replied, "I do not believe either you or Carlisle have met my brother, Tony." Nio shook their hands, and with the pleasantries finally over with, I spoke again.

"We can stay here if you wish, but it might be more comfortable at our house."

"Then we can go there, of course," Carlisle answered, "after you."

"After Nio, actually," I said, "I believe I will bring up the rear."

"As you wish," Carlisle conceded, "do you mind if I ask why?"

"I just thought it might be easier," I replied, "this way, my scent will not blow back into Edward's face."

"Ah, that is a good idea," he said, thoughtfully, "Thank you, that is very considerate of you." Carlisle said.

"You will have to take the lead at some point." Nio interjected.

"I know," I said, "but after we cross the river should be soon enough."

He nodded, and then paused, looking me up and down, frowning.

"Isabella Marie Swan, when was the last time you slept?" He asked angrily. "When was the last time you hunted, for that matter?" He continued, grabbing my arms to look at them. The fact that he spoke aloud told me that he was not happy with me.

Honestly, I didn't blame him. Looking at myself, I could see that my veins were very visible through my pale skin, due to the fact that I had not hunted in two weeks, and I knew that the dark circles under my eyes were so deep they looked like bruises. I winced.

"That will be first on my agenda after tonight." I promised.

He nodded curtly, and I simply could not resist teasing him.

"Now that you are done mothering, can we go now?" I asked.

Nio rolled his eyes, relenting, and turned to the Cullens.

"If you'll follow me please." He said. He turned and ran back the way we had come.

The Cullens followed in pairs, fanning out behind Nio. Carlisle and Esme, went first, followed by Emmett and Rosalie, and Alice and Jasper. Edward was the last one left.

"After you." I said. He almost argued, but just nodded, and then turned and followed the others. I went last, watching Edward as he ran, and berating myself for doing so.

Nio and I were a great deal faster than humans, but not as fast as Vampires. I could feel that the Cullens were holding back. I guessed it was because they did not wish to be rude; our scents were by now clear enough to follow to our destination.

When we got to the river, Nio immediately jumped over and stopped, followed by the Cullens. They all turned to wait for me, and I looked around, plotting my ascent.

Spotting my way across, I took a flying leap over the river, grabbing a protruding branch on the other side, swinging up and landing in a crouch on top of it. I leapt lightly to the ground, and Nio walked over to me.

"Ready?" He asked.

I rolled my eyes. "As ready as I'll ever be for this madness." I replied, turning toward Edward.

"We still have about three miles to go," I said, "will you be alright having me in the front?"

He looked at me for a moment, and nodded. "I will just make sure I do not run directly behind you." He said.

"He'll be fine." Alice interjected. I looked at her, extremely surprised, and then smiled, realizing what had occurred.

"You must be an interesting person to live with." I commented, amused.

"Always." She said, laughing.

"Do you have your ring?" Nio asked me.

"Of course." I replied, detaching it from the chain around my neck. It was silver-banded ring with a smooth, round, black stone in the center. On either side of the stone, the band was molded into an intricate scroll pattern. As I slipped it onto my left index finger, Carlisle hissed in surprise, and my head snapped up.

"Ah," I said, remembering, "You knew Iverania."

He nodded. "She was like a sister to me." He said sadly. "She was the reason I left Italy. She warned me that the longer I stayed, the harder it would be for me to leave. The next time I attempted to contact her, I found out she was dead." An immense sadness welled up inside him, and his mate, Esme, went to comfort him. Suddenly, his head snapped around.

"Do you know how she died?" He asked. "No one I asked would ever tell me."

My face grew darker, and my jaw locked. I knew exactly how she died, but it was Nio who answered.

"She died exactly like the rest of us die," he said bitterly, "The Volturi have been hunting our people down for close to three and a half thousand years."

"Wait, the Italians killed her?" Emmett asked, slightly confused.

"Yes," Nio replied, "Aro has been threatened by the members of our race for thousands of years, even though he is one himself. Both he and Caius are only too happy to hunt, torture, and kill anyone who threatens their power."

Carlisle shook his head sadly. "I knew that the Volturi did not hold any veneration for the other races, but I never thought they would attempt to eradicate a race entirely, and a race one of their own belongs to at that."

"Yes, well, he killed his own sister," I replied, my voice cold, "he's never been one to appreciate the value of family."

"Not just his sister," Nio interjected, "his twin."

"_Aro_ killed Didyme?" Carlisle asked, shocked.

"Yes," I answered darkly, "not personally, of course; he could never get his own hands dirty. Still, Didyme's death was his doing. She and the other member of the Volturi, Marcus, were mates. They wanted to leave, and Aro, always the gentleman, gave them his blessing. However, he could never allow Marcus to leave; his ability to sense relationships between people was far too valuable." My anger was fast growing, so I let Nio speak.

"Aro decided that Didyme's ability to make people happy was useful, but not nearly as useful as Marcus." He continued. "So he had her killed; made it impossible to discover who had committed the crime. What he could not anticipate was Marcus's reaction. He completely lost his head. He tried to get himself killed countless times. Finally, Aro had a member of the guard who can make and remove bonds between people tie him so tightly to the rest of the Volturi, he could not leave them if he tried. Now he can't even attempt to get killed; he simply sits around looking constantly bored. He has remained that way ever since."

"Personally, I think killing his twin made Aro insane as well," I said, having regained my composure, "in a different way, maybe, but insane nonetheless. After the fiasco with Marcus was 'resolved', Aro began hunting down all the members of our race. He had already begun hunting down the leaders; his power obsession was well established at this point, but this was the first time he murdered 'civilians', if you will."

"That's the reason you don't know of our race," Nio interjected, "we've been in hiding for so long, not even the other super-naturals remember us. At least, not unless they are old enough to have been alive during that time."

"How did they find Vera?" Carlisle asked.

"They didn't," I replied sadly, "she gave herself up to them."

"Why?" Esme asked incredulously.

"To save the life of another friend." Nio answered.

Before any of the Cullens could inquire further, I spoke.

"Perhaps we should continue this conversation at our home," I suggested, "this will not be a short conversation, by any means."

"Of course," Carlisle replied, "lead the way."

I nodded, and began running in the direction of our mansion. After about one mile, Edward began to get tense, and accordingly, I did also. I was about to stop when I had an idea.

I jumped into a tree in front of me, and used the branches to leap from one to another. The Cullens could easily follow me, and my scent was somewhat masked, making it easier for Edward to run behind me. I felt his gratitude as we continued on.

I slowed as we closed in on our destination. I leapt to the ground, and walked forward. As we stepped through the trees into an extremely large clearing, I felt the Cullens' shock, and laughed.

We were home.

* * *

**A/N Link to Bella's Ring on my profile :) I'll also have one for the song she's writing from the last chapter when she's finished it.**

**What did you all think of the Quileutes? And Vera's story? Review and let me know! :)**


	8. Explaining

**A/N Sorry this has taken so long guys; my Beta and I had communication issues =/**

**Thanks much to my Beta, Sunflower3759!**

***Drum roll please* This is the chapter you've all been waiting for! You will finally find out what on this green earth Bella and Tony really are!**

**Hope it's not anti-climactic, lol. Let me know what you think!**

* * *

Explaining

"Wow." Emmett said, once again choosing directness over eloquence. I laughed.

"I know, it is rather large," I replied, "but we house more than just ourselves here."

Suddenly, there were five people standing about one hundred yards in front of us. Brant was there, as was a vampire who worked for us, a member of our own race, another of our race who was turned into a vampire, and a panther shape-shifter from South America.

They just stood there for a moment, and I stepped forward. They immediately performed the customary salutary greeting. They placed their right arms over their chests, with their fists on their left shoulders, and then touched their foreheads with their fingertips, extending their hands outward and down until the backs of their hands were touching the ground, as they knelt on one knee.

It was my turn. Placing my left arm behind my back and forming my right hand into a fist, I tapped my forehead with the middle knuckle of my right index finger, touched my first two fingers to my lips, and placed my hand over my heart, extending it down and back while bowing at the waist. Satisfied, the five walked away, and I walked forward, leading the Cullens into the mansion.

Once inside, I led them into a sitting room so that we could talk. Predictably, Emmett was the first to speak.

"What was the deal with the funky hand gestures?" He asked.

"Wow, Emmett," Alice said, "I didn't know you knew words as big as 'gestures.'"

I would have laughed, but Nio had excused himself suddenly, refusing to explain. My brow creased, but I let it go. I trusted my brother, and knew he would tell me what was going on if it turned out to be important. I turned to answer Emmett's question.

"It is the customary greeting between my men and me." I explained.

"Oh," Emmett replied, "I thought it was a password or something. That was a pretty simple answer."

"Oh, there is one that is slightly more complicated," I said, smiling, "I just thought it better to finish one story at a time. Do you mind if I finish Vera's story first?"

"Not really." Emmett answered.

"Well," I said, "As Nio was saying, Vera gave herself over to save a friend she had met who was part of the Volturi guard. She had become very good friends with him, and supported him when he met his mate, and decided to leave the Guard. He went to Aro, and of course received his blessing, but Vera knew better. That same evening, she sent a messenger to Aro, telling her that she knew about what he did to Didyme, and knew he had no intention of letting her friend go. She offered her own life in exchange for her friend's, knowing that Aro would take the trade. He agreed, and she went. She said goodbye to her friend, but never told him about the exchange, knowing he would never allow her to sacrifice herself. He went free, and she died protecting her friend."

"How awful." Esme said sadly. I nodded.

"Yes, it truly was." I replied softly, then my eyes narrowed, and my voice turned bitter. "The Volturi are always very creative when dealing with the leaders of our race. They fear what we can do if allowed to unite the races."

"We?" Carlisle asked, eyebrows rising. I winced; I had not meant to give this particular piece of information away yet.

"Yes," I replied reluctantly, "I am the current leader of my race."

"Interesting, though that is not what I was referring to," he said carefully, "you seem to have some experience with their 'creativity,' as you called it."

I winced again, but did not reply.

"What is your race called?" Jasper inquired, saving me.

"Every nation has its own name for us;" I answered, "In Italy, we are known as the 'Protettori'"

"Protectors?" Edward asked, forcing me to look at him directly, instead of looking at him through my peripheral vision, as I had since I stepped into the clearing in the woods.

I immediately felt the immense and ridiculous confusion that always came when I looked at or even thought about Edward. I immediately became angry with myself, and saw that Jasper was attempting to hold back smirks. I scowled at them both. For his part, Edward looked just as confused as I felt. I blinked, and formed my response.

"Yes," I answered, "they call us protectors because that is what we do. We do what we can to keep the supernatural races a secret, and to protect humans from the particularly sadistic supernaturals who hunt them."

"Sounds like an interesting job." Jasper said.

"Sounds like a crappy job." Rosalie interjected. Emmett winced, Alice smacked her on the arm, and Esme glared at her.

"Sometimes it is," I conceded, "it is our job, however, and someone has to do it."

"Why?" Emmett asked. "Supernaturals are… well, supernatural. Why do they need protection?"

"We can hold our own against humans, yes;" I replied, "it is mostly ourselves we need protection from."

"When you say 'ourselves,' do you mean that the different races fight, or that members of the same race fight?" Edward wondered.

"Both, really;" I replied, "Though I suppose it is mostly the former."

"So you go around, breaking up squabbles like the one between us and the Quileutes?" Alice asked skeptically.

"No, what we deal with is usually on a much larger scale." I replied. "If we were vicious dictators, we would give the Volturi a run for their money."

Alice laughed, but Carlisle and Edward had suddenly become very serious. I could feel their desire to speak, and also their reluctance to do so.

"Speak your minds; I promise you, I am not an easy person to offend." I prompted. Carlisle opened his mouth to speak, but shut it again. It was Edward who finally spoke.

"What exactly is the difference between all of you… and the Volturi?" He asked warily.

"I understand your concern." I answered. "The difference is that we do not kill the people who are attracting attention, we just resolve the issue."

"Unless they happen to be psychopathic morons who not only refuse to stop fighting, but try to kill us as well." Said Nio, who had just re-entered the room.

"Well yes, there are exceptions." I conceded. I felt a sudden wave of confusion coming from everyone but Jasper and Edward. I suddenly realized that they could not see or hear Nio. This both amused and frustrated me. Nio could become invisible by blocking the basic five senses from being able to detect him. I could see him because his talent worked in the mind, and Jasper and Edward could sense him because Nio's talent did not work against supernatural gifts.

I rolled my eyes, and was about to tell him to stop when I spotted a bucket of water balloons under the table beside me. They were apparently left over from a water fight that had been held the night before. With perfect timing, Nio turned his back to me, allowing me to reach down lightning fast, grab one of the water balloons, spin around, and fling it at the back of Nio's head, smirking. It landed with a splash, and Nio became visible to the Cullens again, now dripping wet.

"_That_ is for making me look like an idiot." I said, still smirking. He glared at me for a moment, and then grinned mischievously.

"Fine," he said, stalking toward me, "_this_ is for getting me wet." As he got close to me, he shook his head back and forth like a dog, shaking water all over me. I recoiled, and then grabbed his head and held it still.

"Are you done yet?" I asked. His eyes grew tight, and he pulled back.

"Unfortunately, no." He answered. I frowned, wanting to know what was wrong, but not wanting to discuss it while the Cullens were present. The Cullens, who had been laughing up to this point, now looked worried.

"Can it wait?" I asked. Nio sighed.

"If it must." He said quietly. Carlisle cleared his throat, and I turned to look at him.

"If it is important, we can come back another time." He said graciously.

"Not at all," Nio assured, "we have no problem with you being here while we discuss the information, we simply do not wish you, as our guests, to be subject to our problems."

"Discuss away," Carlisle replied, "we will not be offended at all."

"How important is it, Nio?" I asked, speaking aloud again, as he had not yet let me back into his mind.

"I really think you should see this." He replied reluctantly. I nodded.

"All right then." I said. Nio went to get something, I didn't know what, and Carlisle spoke.

"How could you see Tony when none of us could?" He asked curiously.

"Tony does not become truly invisible," I answered, "he simply tricks your mind into not seeing, hearing, or feeling him."

As I finished speaking, Nio returned. He had retrieved a file from where he had set it when he came in, and laid it on the desk beside me. I saw which file it was and I shuddered involuntarily.

"Is that what made you leave on Wednesday?" Jasper asked, recognizing the emotions I was feeling.

"Yes." I answered simply. Nio laid the pictures out and the Cullens moved closer to look. Edward and Carlisle immediately began reading the police and autopsy reports, while the others examined the photographs. They all felt horror, sadness, and in some cases anger.

"The cuts on the girl's back narrowed our list of suspects considerably," I said, "however, they stopped leaving a trail, and so I was unsuccessful during my search the past three days."

"I think I narrowed the list even more." Nio said quietly, handing me a picture he had held back. It was a picture of the back of the girl's legs. There was a bite mark on the backs of both of her knees. The front of the marks were made with what appeared to be normal, human teeth, but the back of the marks were made with the extremely sharp, pointed teeth of a carnivore. I froze; there was only one race of supernaturals that those bites could have come from. I set the picture down, afraid I would rip it to shreds if I held it any longer.

"That's odd," Esme commented, "I've never seen a creature that left a bite mark like that."

"Yes you have." I replied, allowing my pupils to dilate, eradicating the whites of my eyes. I felt my premolars and molars sharpen, and I opened my mouth. Esme gasped, and the others' eyes widened. I quickly reversed the change, and closed my mouth.

"I am sorry," I apologized, looking down, "it is sometimes simply easier to show than to tell."

"The bite marks mean that one or more of our race killed the girl," Nio interjected, "which narrows our list to one definite suspect."

My eyes narrowed, as I caught his meaning.

"James." I snarled.

"I believe so." Nio replied, finally allowing our connection to open again.

"Who is James?" Jasper asked. I looked at Edward.

"Have you told them what I told you about Nio and me?" I asked tightly. He nodded, concerned, and I turned to Jasper.

"James is the one who kidnapped us from the hospital in Italy where we were born." I answered.

"Needless to say, we're a little opposed to him being in this country, let alone this state." Nio added.

"But why would he cut the girl's back?" Alice wondered. Nio and I shared a look, but said nothing.

"I am curious about that as well," Carlisle added, "the cuts were inflicted post mortem."

"So what made you freak out?" Rosalie asked me. "You've had to have seen worse than that before, what makes this so awful?"

Nio snarled, but I silenced him with a look. He took a step back, glaring at Rosalie. I did not answer her myself, I simply looked at her. We stood that way for a long time; Rosalie challenging, while I was simply studying her; until finally, I moved. I took off the jacket I was wearing, and laid it over a chair. The shirt I was wearing was a halter that tied around the neck and at the bottom so that it would not touch my back. With one last glance at Rosalie, I turned around.

Esme gasped again, this time joined by Alice. Before I knew what was happening, I felt a hand on my back, and hissed in pain. Instinct taking over, I whipped around, snarling, to confront whatever was causing me pain, and froze when I saw Esme's startled face. Realizing that I had almost hurt her, I backed away, horrified. There was fear in Esme's face, and I was instantly filled with self-loathing. I knew that my pupils had dilated and my back teeth had sharpened. I wanted to change back and apologize, but I could not calm down enough to do so. I continued to back away, shaking, and trying desperately not to lose control of my emotions.

I soon backed myself into a corner and sank to the ground, resting my forehead on my knees and trying to calm myself down. Nio was trying to talk me down, but nothing was working. He was crouched down now, ready to tackle me if need be. Suddenly, I heard someone directly in front of me. I cautiously raised my head and saw Jasper crouched in front of me.

"Bella," he said gently, "I can help you if you'll let me."

I could feel his concern, and there was something familiar in his face that made me want to trust him. It was similar to how I felt when I met Charlie on the streets of Italy. I nodded in answer, and he extended his hand.

"I don't have to have physical contact, but it helps." He explained. I nodded again, placing one of my arms on top of my knees and then holding still, afraid to move another muscle. He reached the rest of the way and grasped my forearm. I immediately felt more relaxed, and I was able to let my teeth retract and my pupils contract. I released Jasper's arm and concentrated on my breathing. Jasper stood and extended a hand down to me. I took one last deep breath and took his hand, allowing him to help me stand.

"Thank you." I said sincerely, allowing him to feel, rather than hear, the majority of my gratitude. I then turned to Esme, gratitude turning once again into guilt and self-loathing.

"I know it does not mean much," I began, "but you have my sincere apologies. My brother was right earlier; I should not have allowed myself to grow this thirsty. In my disregard I allowed myself to become a danger to you and your family, and for that I am truly sorry."

She looked at me for a moment, and then smiled.

"It's quite all right," she assured me, "I know you didn't mean any harm. To be honest, I was more shocked by your scars than anything else. It's always hard for me to believe that someone could do something so atrocious to another person. It scares me sometimes, what people can do to one another."

Her words sparked an idea in my head, and I gave her a small smile.

"I owe you thanks," I said, "not only for your kind words, but for their inspiration. You just helped me finish the last lyrics to a song I have been working on."

She blinked in surprise, and I smiled again.

"I am sorry, but I must go," I stated, "Nio can answer any other questions you have."

"Where are you going?" Esme asked.

I sighed. "As gracious as you have been, and as much as Jasper helped me, I still need to hunt. Better I go now than stay here and risk hurting someone." I turned to Nio.

"Will you write down those lyrics with the rest?" I asked.

"Of course," he replied, "now go catch a big cat."

I rolled my eyes; he often made fun of my affinity for hunting felines. All blood-drinkers preferred carnivores over herbivores, but I only hunted felines or bears. I suppose canines reminded me too much of my Quileute family.

Shaking my head, I turned and darted out of the room and out of the mansion. Despite my brothers teasing, I had some mountain lions to hunt.

* * *

**Tony Swan**

Once Izzy was out of range, I turned to the Cullens.

"As she said, if you have any more questions, I am able to answer them."

"Is she okay?" Jasper asked simply. I smiled sadly.

"I think she'll be a lot better when she knows for sure whether she'll live or not." I answered. "The decision isn't completely up to her. If she is turned into a vampire, she will be the leader of our race forever. This is a decision that belongs to all of our people. A 'vote,' if you will, is being taken all over the world. If they agree, Izzy will be turned. The choice is not an easy one, though. The line doesn't move backward; if Iz dies, there will be no leader. Our people have to decide if they would rather have no leader, or the same leader for the rest of eternity."

"That must be difficult." Alice said. I nodded.

"There will be a party, though two years late, to celebrate Izzy becoming the leader, at which she will find out how long she will be the leader. No irony there." I rolled my eyes.

"Any more questions?" I asked again.

"I still don't get the weird hand gestures." Emmett said. I laughed.

"That was a sign of respect to Izzy," I replied, "because she is the Capa."

"Capa meaning Head or Boss?" Carlisle asked.

"Either one works, I suppose," I answered, grinning, "though most of the people here call her 'boss' when they're speaking English." I paused and waited. When no one else raised any questions, I decided to show them more about Izzy.

"Would you all like to see what Iz does in her spare time?" I asked. Surprised, no one answered. I smiled.

"I'll take that as a yes," I said, "follow me." I turned and darted out the door, not waiting to see if the Cullens would follow me. When I got to the music room, I stopped, turned around, and saw that all of the Cullens had followed. Before I could show them the room, though, Alice spoke.

"I do have one more question." She said, almost reluctantly.

"Ask away." I replied.

"The scars on Bella's back," she began hesitantly, "they were an iridescent white color, like ones left by vampire venom."

"That's not a question." I sighed, stalling; this was one thing I absolutely hated talking about. It brought back too many horrible memories.

"Well, how is she not…" She hesitated.

"A vampire?" I finished. She nodded, grimacing. I could tell she disliked asking me this, probably guessing it would bring up bad memories. I took a deep breath, readying myself to answer her question.

"This story requires a bit more background information;" I warned, "you should all hear the entire story anyway."

"Not a problem." She assured me. I nodded and began.

"When Charlie fist brought us here, we had no idea that he was actually our father. We found out soon, though, that he had a daughter, Carlamina. She was born out of wedlock, and the mother had died in a car accident when she was three. Charlie had cared for her ever since. In the family we called her Mina, and everyone else called her Carla. At first, she was ecstatic to have siblings, and we all got along great. After the initial excitement wore off, though, she began to resent us."

"Why?" Alice asked. "What reason did she have to resent you?"

"Our bloodline is the only line of our race that is completely integrated with human bloodlines." I answered. "The only members of our race born into our bloodline are the Capas and their twins, and so Mina was human. She was jealous of our connection to the supernatural world. Ironically, she has a pretty spectacular supernatural talent of her own; she is able to take on the appearance of anyone she wants. It's another of those 'tricking the mind' talents, so it didn't work on Izzy. At first, we couldn't figure out why she was jealous, but eventually we came to the conclusion that what she really wanted was to be more than human. She was smart, though; she never let it show. She even learned to control her emotions around Izzy. Eventually, Izzy thought that the jealousy was temporary, and that Mina had gotten over it. She still blames herself sometimes for not seeing that Mina was messed up, but there was nothing she could have done anyway." I sighed, and pushed on.

"Mina was also very observant; she was actually the first person who realized that Izzy and I were Charlie's and Renee's lost twins. At this point Mihaela was still the Capa, and was always traveling, so Mina had never met her. About four years after we moved here, Mihaela came to visit Charlie. When she saw us, she just about suffered an aneurysm."

"I did not!" A voice behind me interrupted. I turned around to see Mihaela herself walking toward me. I smiled wearily.

"Hello, Haela." I greeted her. She rolled her eyes.

"I did not even come close to forming an aneurysm." She corrected me.

"Maybe not," I conceded, "but the look on your face was extremely comical."

She whacked me on the back of the head.

"Show some respect for your great-grandmother." She mock scolded me. I chuckled, while Haela turned to the Cullens.

"When I saw Bella and Tony, I knew they had to be related to us." She explained. "I thought they were descended from a branch of our line that had split off somewhere. I should have realized what had happened; the only protettori who are born into our bloodline are the Capas and their twins. Carla, however, realized what had happened right away."

"And how did she manage that?" Rosalie asked. "What did she know that you all didn't?"

"She knew what she saw." I answered cryptically, mostly to tick Rosalie off. Her smugness and superiority were beginning to irritate me. Edward attempted to hide a smile, while Rosalie just glared at me. Finally, I gave a straight answer.

"She knew when she saw Mihaela's eyes." I explained. "Seeing Mihaela's eyes reminded her of how distinctive they are, and that only people who were descended from our bloodline had them. She knew then that we had to be Charlie's children. She kept her revelations to herself, but after meeting Mihaela she became even angrier, and we didn't know why until we read her diary."

"Why would you invade her privacy like that?" Esme demanded.

"In her anger she had run away." I explained. "Charlie was distraught, and we were all saddened by her sudden departure. Her diary was the only thing she had left behind, and that most likely by accident. We were searching for anything that could tell us where or why she had gone. She wrote that seeing Mihaela and us together, she had realized that we had to be Charlie's biological children. She said she couldn't believe she had never noticed before that we all had the same eyes. This revelation had made her more jealous and bitter, and she wanted to take it out on us." I stopped sadly, and Haela spoke.

"Charlie had told Carlamina that the man who had kidnapped Bella and Tony had been looking for them when Charlie found them in Italy." She continued. "He had also told her that James was one of our race who had been bitten by a vampire. She went to Italy to find James, and succeeded sooner than we would have thought possible. She asked him to turn her… in return for telling him where Bella and Tony were. He refused, telling her that he had been hunting the twins for years, and wanted to finish the job himself. He also did not wish to risk the Volturi's involvement by breaking the laws about turning children into vampires He told her that she was too young, and he would not risk angering the Volturi by creating an immortal child." Haela sighed sadly; she was getting closer to the part neither of us wanted to talk about.

"Angered by James's rebuff, Carla sought out the Volturi." She continued. "She knew about their hunts for the Capas, and so knew they would be receptive to her offer. She again offered information on Bella and Tony in exchange for becoming a vampire. They agreed, but told her she had to wait a few years before they would turn her. They explained to her again the laws about immortal children, saying she was too young and volatile to be a vampire. She was angry, but knew that this would be her best offer, as no one else cared about capturing Bella and Tony, and so she accepted. When James heard this, he knew that it was only a matter of time before the Volturi captured Bella and Tony. He went to them, explained his grudge against the twins for eluding and rebuffing him years before, and asked to join the Volturi in their capture. Aro and the others agreed, believing that James's insights into Bella and Tony's characters would be useful." Shaking her head, she turned to me.

"Your turn." She said sadly. I nodded, resigned, turning to Carlisle first.

"I assume that you know about the kidnapping from Izzy's medical file." I said. Carlisle nodded.

"After we moved to Phoenix, we mostly tried to blend in." I began. "Haela had just explained that Izzy was the new Capa, but we did not yet have any involvement in the goings on here. About two weeks after we had arrived, we received a letter addressed to Isabella and Antonio Valeriani. If the use of our full first names wasn't a red flag, the use of our Italian surname was. No one here uses that name. The letter was short, simple and to the point. It read:

'My Dear Friends,

I have long been intrigued with the phenomena surrounding the Capas and their twins. I would be delighted if you would consider coming to Volterra for a short visit so that I might study these phenomena in the next generation.

Aro

"Knowing about their 'studies,' we refused." I continued wryly. "Unfortunately for us, they had employed James's assistance. James is an extremely talented tracker; he could find someone who had been in this spot one year before. Now that he knew where we were, it was all too easy for him. He found us within the week. He and a few members of the Volturi guard, Felix and Demetri I believe, crept into Renee's house and told us to come with them or they would kill Renee and her husband, Phil. Needless to say, we went with them. They had chartered a private jet, so it was no trouble getting us to Italy without raising suspicion."

I paused, looking at the Cullens. They were all intent on my story, and a few of them looked as if they could sense that something horrible was going to happen. They weren't wrong.

"When we got to Italy, there was a welcome party waiting for us at the airport. Jane and Alec, more members of the Volturi guard, were there to make sure we came quietly. We arrived at Volterra later that day, and met the infamous Aro, Caius, and Marcus. It was obvious at once that Aro was the leader of the group. Caius was intent on the conversation, but spoke little, and Marcus just sat there and looked bored. Aro was extremely cordial; he welcomed us to Volterra and 'requested' that we not leave without first informing him. He informed us that meals would be provided for us whenever we wanted, and we informed him that we only feed on animals. They were all surprised at this, and Aro said that only humans would be provided for meals. We told him that we would be only too happy to leave the city to feed, and he agreed quickly. Too quickly, in fact; we were immediately suspicious. Our suspicion soon proved to be valid; we were never allowed to leave Volterra, and there were no animals in the city on which we could feed. We can last a while longer without feeding than vampires can. Vampires need to hunt at least every two or three weeks, while we can normally hunt once a month and be fine. After six weeks, we were extremely thirsty and much weaker than we liked being, especially under the present circumstances. We both had the unpleasant thought that we were being starved, and we were soon proven right. We were again brought to the Volturi, and Aro told us that he would like to do some tests; in order to further his studies, of course. Having no other choice, we agreed."

I paused again, and noticed again that the Cullens were growing uncomfortable in anticipation of what was coming. I continued reluctantly.

"The first tests were simple enough;" I continued, "We were asked to solve mental puzzles, mostly. We were put through several different IQ tests, memory tests, and any other mental test Aro could think of. These were all extremely easy, and we began to become apprehensive about what was to come. We didn't know what was in store for us, but we knew it wouldn't be pleasant. After all of the intellectual tests were done, Aro announced that he wanted to do some physical experiments."

I paused, my eyes narrowing as I became angrier. I continued, trying to keep my voice under control.

"Aro wished to read our minds first. Obviously, he couldn't read Bella's, and she decided it wouldn't be prudent to let him read my mind either. Since we were both shielded, Aro knew nothing of us except what others had already told him. We had never revealed the extent of our abilities to either James or Mina, and so Aro believes to this day that we are both Shields, and he knows nothing of our other abilities. After failing to read our minds, he wanted to see if any of the guard's abilities affected us. He explained that Jane caused the illusion of pain and her twin brother, Alec, took away all of a person's senses. They both attempted to incapacitate us and were unsuccessful." I paused again, my voice becoming bitter.

"Then he got to the fun part." I hissed. I closed my eyes and gritted my teeth, unable to continue. Unfortunately for me, Emmett was not a patient person

"What did he do?" He asked. I didn't answer, still trying to regain my composure. I wouldn't do anything awful if I lost control, but I really didn't want to break anything.

Fortunately for me, someone else answered first.

* * *

**Bella Swan**

After I had a sufficient amount of blood in my system, I returned to the mansion. I was surprised to hear the Cullens still talking to Nio; I had thought they would be done by now. I then realized that Nio was telling them about the kidnapping. I was also surprised to hear Mihaela with them. I decided she must have already shared her side of our story. I slowed as I entered the mansion. It sounded like Nio was drawing close to the end of the story. As I reached the group, I saw that they were standing in the hallway in front of the music room. No one noticed that I was standing behind them, not even Nio. I then noticed that he was struggling to regain his composure, and Emmett was definitely not helping.

"What did he do?" I heard him ask, wishing I could have shut him up.

Instead, I answered him.

* * *

**A/N Sorry, really wasn't planning on leaving a cliff hanger this time, but like I keep saying, this story writes itself, and it just got too long again, lol. Fun stuff ahead, though. Hint* Jasper will eventually become a big part of the story. (As if any of the Cullens aren't already, Duh!)**

**So I've decided that I can't give you guys a time frame in which I'll get my chapters done. It's been taking me longer than I expected to write them, and then things like stupid email problems come up and my Beta can't look at my chapter. I can only promise you that I am writing and will update as soon as I can.**

**Also, I just wanted to let you guys know that I love hearing from you guys. I want your feedback, whether it's criticism, questions, or ideas about where I should take the story next. Thaks to all who review, and I hope everyone else starts. =)**

**Link to pics of Bella and Tony's mansion on my profile! :)**


	9. Understanding

**A/N Fair warning, this chapter gets a bit intense. Not graphic, just a little crazy. You all get to see just how twisted my mind can really be, lol. No idea where any of this came from, as usual. Half the time I don't know what I'm writing until it's on the computer in front of me.**

**Thanks again to my beta, Sunflower3579**

**Once again, and with great sadness... I own nothing. :'(**

* * *

**Understanding**

"Aro wanted to see how much pain we could endure." I said. All heads snapped around, finally noticing me standing against the wall behind them. I continued speaking before anyone could interrupt.

"Knowing we had no real choice, I told Aro that I would participate willingly if he only 'tested' me, and left Nio out of it. I hoped that he was really only interested in seeing how the Capa handled his tests, and not so much the twin. He discussed the issue with his brothers for a time, but eventually agreed. From what I could tell, only Caius was truly disappointed that Nio would not be tortured. Aro was, as I had hoped, only truly interested in me, and Marcus could not bring himself to care about anything anymore. I had already severed my connection with Nio, not wanting him to see my plan. Sensing that what was coming would be painful; I did not renew our connection."

"Because he would feel your pain?" Esme asked quietly.

"Yes," I answered, and then continued quickly, "First Aro wanted to see how I would handle blunt force trauma. He was never actually there, of course, but his devoted servants kept him informed. James had already warned him that blunt force probably would not affect me much because he had used quite a bit on Nio and me when we were children. He was correct. I suffered whatever they threw at me and did not say a word. This was kept up for about a week. I did not understand why; Aro knew it was not working, and yet he had his lackeys continue. After a time I realized that he wanted to weaken me further, and he was successful. By the end of that week, my rate of healing had decreased dramatically. Normally, we heal seconds after being injured, but the weaker we are, the slower we heal. I was already weak from starvation, and I knew that whatever I suffered from that point on would heal at a human pace, if not slower." I paused and took a deep breath, forcing my emotions down.

"This was when Aro decided to change tactics." I continued flatly. "Later on Nio and I guessed that he had wanted not only to torture me, but to mark me, reminding me that he was the true leader. He instructed his lackeys to heat two daggers. They were specifically instructed to heat them so that they were hot enough to burn, but would not cauterize the wounds they made. They planned to use one knife at a time, so that they could continue uninterrupted. Making sure to keep the pattern completely symmetrical, they alternated turns carving into my back. I was tied up and suspended from the ceiling spread eagle so that my muscles were unwillingly tensed. I can only assume this was to maximize the pain. After they were done, they waited." I paused and turned to Alice.

"I believe we have finally come to the answer to your question." I said. She nodded, wide-eyed, and I continued.

"After a few days, the wounds had closed enough that no blood vessels were exposed. They then took vampire venom and rubbed it into the wounds. Since it had no way into my bloodstream, it simply sat in the skin. As the wounds continued to heal, the venom was trapped inside my skin. Vampire venom does not truly hurt us, but it does burn when it comes into contact with our skin. I have gotten used to the constant pain, and can sometimes even forget about it. When someone or something touches my back, however, it causes me a great deal more pain. That is why Nio pressed his hand against my back when we first met, and why I reacted so violently when Esme touched me." I stopped, gauging the Cullens' reactions. There was a great deal of shock and horror, and a great deal of sympathy. I sighed.

"I am sorry," I said, "I know I get a little scary when I talk about this."

"What she purposefully failed to mention is that throughout this entire ordeal, she didn't utter a sound." Nio interjected. The Cullens' eyes widened, staring at me. I shrugged.

"I didn't want to give them the satisfaction." I explained. "And I did not know where Nio was; I had closed our mental link, but I did not want him to hear me screaming. So I didn't."

"How did you two escape?" Jasper asked.

"I had been sneaking out to hunt whenever they were torturing Izzy." Nio answered. "Since no one there knew of my ability, no one noticed me leaving. They didn't even realize I was gone, really, they were only interested in my sister."

"Something you should be grateful for." I interjected.

"Hardly." He replied tightly, eyes narrowed. "Anyway, I was by now as strong as I'd ever been, and was able to get Izzy and escape. I forced her to renew our connection so that I could shadow her as well. The amount of pain she had endured astounded me. That she was able to remain silent still amazes me today." He paused, a pained look on his face. "Anyway, we walked right out of Volterra. Well, I walked out of Volterra; I practically had to carry Izzy because she was too weak to do much of anything. Luckily, Catalina, one of the other former Capas, was in Italy hoping to find us. We spotted her outside the city and recognized her from her portrait in the mansion. We revealed ourselves to her, and she helped us return home. When we arrived in Phoenix, we found that Charlie had traveled to Phoenix to wait with Renee. They were both distraught over what had happened. The police and Renee immediately took Izzy to the hospital, where she was examined. She was very nearly admitted, which only would have made matters worse. Charlie and I argued the issue with Renee for hours, but eventually, Izzy just got up and walked out. It was the greatest display of strength I've ever seen, and that's saying a lot. The doctor just about burst a blood vessel, though. He wasn't happy, but agreed that he couldn't keep her there, especially when Charlie was okay with her leaving. He insisted that she return for a few follow-up exams, and she agreed." He stopped here and turned to me, indicating he was done speaking.

"During one of these exams, the doctor found a few holes in one of my bones." I continued.

"The Multiple Myeloma." Carlisle surmised. I nodded.

"One of my torturers injected contaminated human blood into one or more of my wounds while I was too weak to notice." I explained. "My metabolism helped the cancer to develop extremely quickly, but my blood also fought and held it back."

"Did Aro approve that?" Carlisle asked.

"I am not sure." I answered. "He may not even know the effect human blood has on us."

"Then who would do that?" He asked. "Who wanted you dead that badly?"

I dropped my gaze, not wanting to see the shock from my answer.

"Our sister." Nio and I answered at the same time.

"Although," I continued, "the other person there was James. He may have done it also, but I have a bad feeling it was Mina." As I had anticipated, there was a good deal of shock and horror emanating from the Cullens. This seemed to be a recurring theme tonight. Carlisle recovered first.

"Not to drive in an unpleasant topic, but I am curious about something." He stated.

"Not to sound rude, Dr. Cullen, but you seem to be constantly curious." I said, allowing myself a small smile.

"I suppose so." He answered, chuckling. He then grew sober. "During our meeting last week, you said that your disease would not allow you to live until you stopped aging."

"I did." I said simply.

"How do you know that?" He asked. "Even with all the medical knowledge in the world no one could ever accurately predict the length of someone's life."

"I also said that my blood was fighting it, but could not stop it." I answered. "The cancer is deteriorating my bones at a constant rate; my brain simply made the calculation before I could stop it."

"When-

"I will not tell you when I am supposed to die." I said rigidly. "I am the only one who knows, and it is going to stay that way."

"I'm guessing this is not an uncommon subject." Carlisle replied. I nodded once, darting a glare at Nio; he was constantly badgering me to tell him the day I would die. I always refused to tell him; he did not need that constantly hovering in his mind.

"Ugh!" He exclaimed. "You're like the only Capa who _wants_ to die! The others were at least smart enough to become vampires." He growled in exasperation. I grew incredibly sad; it was horrible, not knowing if I would live or die. But I would respect the wishes of the people.

"The decision isn't up to me anymore," I said softly, "you know that."

"But it should be." He replied angrily. I said nothing, letting him cool off for a moment. He finally let out a long sigh.

"Sorry about the meltdown," he said to no one in particular, "we can get back to questions now."

"I have one." Edward stated. I nodded my assent.

"Mihaela and Tony spoke as if all of the Capas had twins." He said.

"That is not strictly a question." I replied.

"How is that possible; statistically or biologically?" He asked. I turned to Mihaela.

"I believe you can best answer this one, Haela." I stated. She turned to Edward.

"There is much we do not understand about Capas and our twins;" she explained, "the first being that we always have twins. We do not know why, or how, this happens. As you said, it should not be possible. But that is not even the most confounding phenomenon surrounding the Capas."

I glanced up, surprised; Mihaela was not usually one to expand her explanations. She usually just answered the question in as few words as possible and moved on. The fact that she had begun telling an entire story was unprecedented, and spoke of a great amount of trust in the Cullens; especially since she had only just met them. I listened as she continued.

"The most amusing phenomenon is that the Capas are always female." Mihaela said, smirking.

"But they also always have male twins." Nio interjected smugly. Mihaela rolled her eyes and moved on.

"The Capas are also always the firstborn of the twins, and the firstborn period. If the parents do not have twins first, there is no chance the Capa will be born in that generation. I admit I have considered that this probably helps avoid giving an older sibling a complex."

She was now on a roll, and showed no signs of stopping.

"The Capas and their twins are always telepathically connected. Bella and Tony's connection is much stronger than simple telepathy, but theirs is completely unprecedented. I suppose this only goes to show that even a pattern that spans generations can be broken."

"Or that they're just freaks." Emmett joked. Nio rolled his eyes and I held back a smile. I had a sense that Emmett often acted as a comic relief in tense or uncomfortable situations. Undeterred, Mihaela continued.

"Last, but definitely not least, when the twins are born with special talents, which is often, they are always complementary of each other."

"You mean that Bella's shield protects the mind, and Tony's protects the body, so they complement each other?" Edward asked, clarifying.

"Yes," Mihaela confirmed, "every Capa born with extra abilities compliments her twin and his abilities."

"What about Bella's other ability?" Edward continued. "What kind of ability could possibly complement that?"

"None," Mihaela answered, "Bella's particular emotive talent comes up once in a very long while in our bloodline, and it is the only ability that is not complemented. It is the most dangerous ability ever recorded, and the last time it was introduced into our bloodline, the possessor of the ability caused mass destruction and chaos." Edward glanced at me, and I looked away, ashamed. Instead of fear, though, I felt only compassion coming from Edward. Confused, I kept my eyes averted while Haela continued.

"We were extremely wary when Bella revealed that she had this gift, but she has proven herself to be both wise and wary when it comes to her gift."

"Until today." Rosalie interjected snidely. I winced, remembering how close I had come to hurting sweet Esme.

"Yes, well, everyone makes mistakes." Mihaela replied coldly, her golden eyes flashing. "And I would imagine that you are no different."

Rosalie bridled instantly, and I decided to head Haela off before the situation could escalate. Aiming for subtlety, I used American Sign Language to communicate.

"**Calm down,"** I signed, **"we don't need conflict today."**

She nodded, and Carlisle cleared his throat.

"As much as we appreciate your attempt at discretion, you should probably know that my family and I all know American Sign Language."

I couldn't help but smile at this.

"Good to know." I replied, turning to Haela. "Anything else?" I asked her.

"I believe I am done." She replied. "And I need to leave anyway."

"Are you sure?" Nio asked. "We're about to get to the fun part."

"I am definitely sure." Haela said. She hugged us both, careful not to crush us against her marble skin, and bid the Cullens goodbye. Before she was quite out of sight, I remembered something.

"Haela!" I called. She paused and turned around, allowing me to continue.

"I was wondering if you could have a talk with your grandson." I said, smirking.

"Which one?" She asked. I rolled my eyes.

"Both, really," I answered, "but Billy seems to be the more imperative issue at the moment."

She smiled and nodded, turning to leave. I then turned to Nio.

"The fun part?" I asked, searching for clarification. I then realized what room we were in front of. My eyes narrowed.

"Were you even going to ask first?" I asked, slightly angry. He winced.

"I just thought that since we were telling them our life story anyway, they might find it interesting to see what you do in your spare time." He explained. I softened, and then grinned.

"Fine," I replied mischievously, "you first." Nio groaned as I walked past the Cullens to a door on the opposite side of the wide hallway. This was Nio's studio, where he did all of his painting. He was an amazing artist, but never thought his work was good enough, and so hated people seeing it. I paused before opening the door.

"Should I give you a chance to clean up first?" I teased.

"Just go." Nio sighed. I smiled, opened the double doors, and led the way into the room.

As the Cullens walked into the room, I felt their curiosity turn to amazement. I didn't blame them; my brother was immensely talented. He had paintings everywhere; hanging on walls, stacked against walls, on easels. Some were finished, while other sat half-done, waiting for Nio to finish them. The whole floor was covered in tarp, as painting got a bit messy, and in the back right corner was a door that led to a large storage room where Nio kept his extra paints, supplies, and canvas.

The room itself was about sixteen hundred square feet. It was about forty feet deep and forty feet across. The former ballroom did seem a bit large for an art studio, but it was close to the area of the mansion Nio and I occupied most often, and no one used it anymore.

The Cullens examined many of Nio's paintings, while he stood by feeling extremely uncomfortable.

"_Relax,"_ I sent, _"It's not as if they are art connoisseurs."_ I rolled my eyes and walked over to Alice and Edward, who had paused in front of my favorite of Nio's works. It was a gorgeous mountain scene, with the moon hanging in the sky, reflected in a lake below. The mountain was covered in snow, and there was a forest of trees at the bottom. The whole painting had a blue tint to it, which for some reason only added to my love of it. As I walked up behind Alice and Edward, they turned.

"That is my absolute favorite of Nio's paintings." I said. Alice was excited about something, though I could not imagine what, and she decided to make herself scarce.

"I think I'll go find Jazz." She informed us, flouncing off toward her mate. I turned to Edward, raising my eyebrows.

"Is she okay?" I asked. He rolled his eyes.

"Sometimes I wonder." He replied. I smiled, and nodded toward the painting.

"What drew you to this one?" I asked. He turned back toward it, and I took a small step away from him to maintain a safe distance.

"I honestly don't know," he replied, "it just seemed to make the most sense to me, I suppose." He turned his head back toward me, and noticed my change in proximity. He winced, and sensed a healthy dose of self-loathing coming from him.

"What is wrong?" I asked, concerned. Suddenly, I felt his loathing become determination.

"You don't have to be afraid of me," he replied, "I know I have given you every reason to be, but I am in control of myself now." He looked away again, and I wanted nothing more than to place my hand on his shoulder to comfort him. I almost did; I raised my hand, but put it back down, speaking instead.

"Edward, I am not afraid of you." I assured. He looked back at me, surprised.

"Then why—

"I am only afraid of hurting you." I continued. "I would not be able to live with myself if I did." It was my turn to be disgusted with myself, and I couldn't look at him anymore. He opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again. Luckily, Nio saved us from the awkward silence.

"It's Izzy's turn!" He shouted across the room, startling both me and the Cullens. I smiled despite myself.

"As you wish," I replied, "lead the way."

Nio got halfway to the door before spinning around.

"Oh! I almost forgot!" He exclaimed, darting past me. I started to turn around but Nio pushed my shoulder to stop me.

"Don't move." He said. I heard the door to his storage room open and close again, and then I heard the soft whistling of something flying toward me. I could tell that its trajectory would send it over my left shoulder, and so I lifted my left hand up and caught the object. I looked down to find myself holding a standard letter envelope. I frowned, confused, until Nio, who had come to stand next to me, spoke again.

"Happy birthday, Iz." He said softly. I looked at him, surprised. I had not noticed the date today. I shook my head wearily, smiling softly.

"Yours is in my studio." I told him. He nodded.

Gesturing for the Cullens to follow him, Nio walked back out into the hallway. Edward followed last, giving me a strange look as he went, and I brought up the rear. Letting the Cullens into my studio caused me just as much discomfort as it had Nio. They followed Nio to the set of double doors directly across from his studio. He flung open the doors dramatically, causing me to roll my eyes for the umpteenth time that evening. He and the Cullens went in, and I once again felt a great deal of amazement from the Cullens.

The room was an exact mirrored version of Nio's, but instead of paints and canvas, I had musical instruments and a small recording studio. The storage room, now in the back left, held extra microphones, instrument stands, sheet music, instrument cleaning supplies, extra strings, and even a few barely-used instruments. In the back right corner, there was a sound-proofed room used for recording. It covered about two-hundred and twenty-five feet of the room, spanning fifteen feet deep and across. Inside there was an electric keyboard and an acoustic drum set.

In the center of the main room stood my grand piano, and against the left wall near the storage room sat another, covered with a cloth. Also along the left wall was a writing desk and a couch. I kept my most used instruments along the right wall: an acoustic and electric violin, an acoustic and electric cello, a couple of different acoustic and electric guitars, and an electric bass guitar. All of these, coupled with the two pianos, made my affinity for string instruments obvious. I had a few brass instruments as well, but barely ever used them, and so they stayed in the storage room. I loved using this old ballroom as a music studio; the acoustics were absolutely amazing.

I expected this visit to be quicker than the one to Nio's studio; there was nothing to study, after all. I did not count on Esme's next question.

"Will you play something for us?" She asked, gesturing toward the piano in the center. I blinked, surprised. I opened my mouth, only to close it again. I honestly was not sure if I could play or not.

"Oh, for Heaven's sake!" Nio exclaimed, grabbing my hand and dragging me to my piano. It was a sleek, black Steinway Grand; no embellishments or decorations apart from the name and lyre logo stenciled onto the front and sides. Nio stopped me at the right of the piano, and I just stared at it for a moment, hearing the Cullens stop ten feet to my left. I lifted the fallboard and let my hand trail over the keys, playing a few random notes, and then a chord. I then sat down and began to play a song I had written about a year earlier. It was simple but multifaceted, leaving the mood to the interpretation of the listener, though it did use minor chords often, which gave it a bit of a melancholic feel. As my hands moved across the keys, I lost myself in the music, letting my emotions flow out through my fingers, and releasing all of the pent up tension in my mind and body. When I finished, I exhaled in shock at what had just happened. I had not played like that in a long time. I sat there for a moment, until Esme broke the silence.

"That was beautiful." She complimented me. Blinking again, I turned around and saw that her eyes had grown red, as if she would be crying if she had any tears.

"Thank you." I replied, my voice trembling; I was still slightly dazed. Esme became concerned, but it was Edward who spoke next.

"Are you all right, Bella?" He asked, stepping forward. I glanced up, surprised; he was genuinely worried. I concentrated on my breathing.

"Yes," I answered, my voice now steady, "I'm sorry; I have not been able to truly play anything in a long time. That I was able to actually immerse myself in my music twice in one night is nothing short of incredible." I paused. "I don't suppose that makes much sense." I said, looking down at my hands; I never explained these things right.

"No, it makes perfect sense;" Edward replied, "I go through periods of time when I cannott play as well."

My head snapped back up.

"You are a musician?" I asked. He nodded. Hmm. Another piece of the puzzle that was Edward Cullen.

"Not as well rounded as you, though;" He continued, looking around the room, "I really only play piano. Did you say 'twice in one night?'"

"I really only play piano as well." I replied. "I play the guitar well enough to write songs when I am away from here, but everything else I only use if I am recording something. And yes, I did say 'twice in one night.' When I returned from hunting James I found that I had very nearly reached my breaking point. I know from experience that the only way for me to regain my sanity is to not only play, but to release myself to my music, something that has become very difficult for me recently. Luckily for me, I found a fantastic source of inspiration."

"And what was that?" He asked. I mentally smacked myself. I should have known that question was coming.

"It's not really important." I replied, wincing. I was lying, of course; it was one of the most important revelations of my relatively short life.

"As you wish." He said graciously.

"Can we hear the song?" Alice asked.

"I didn't finish it." I said quickly, again looking down at my hands. Fortunately, Nio decided to come to my rescue.

"As genuinely pleasant as this has been, I think we have had enough for one night. Izzy seems to be much better now, but I'll still feel better if she can get some sleep before she has to return to town later."

I sighed. "To be honest, so will I." I replied, standing. "I am sorry to be so abrupt. You are all welcome to return any time you wish; you may even stay tonight if you so choose. However, my being tired can be as dangerous as my being thirsty, and so I must go."

"It's three-thirty in the morning," Rosalie informed me, "how much sleep do you plan to get?"

"Just as much as I need." I replied, ignoring her inexplicable attitude problem. "We do not need as much sleep as humans; only about three hours every night. I will be home by seven." I smiled, and Rosalie looked at me curiously.

"I have one more quick question," Edward interjected, "and if you cannot answer it quickly, I promise it can wait."

"What is it?" I asked, forcing myself to concentrate on his words, and not his criminally beautiful face. He nodded toward the left wall.

"Do you really need two pianos?" He asked. I blinked, surprised; I was expecting a much more complicated question. I was so surprised, I had to laugh.

"Not really." I replied, still smiling. I walked over to the cloth-covered piano. "We acquired this one in the early nineteen-hundreds, but no one here was musically gifted, so it just sat there. I am in the process of restoring it. I doubt I can return the natural color of the ivory on the keys, but I hope to restore the rest. I may even replace the ivory with modern-day plastic." I pulled the cover off of the piano. This one, like my more modern one, was a Steinway. It was a beautiful, dark, mahogany color, with intricate designs on the legs, the sides, the lyre post, and the music rack.

"It is a gorgeous model." Edward commented. "What is wrong with it?"

"The only thing wrong with it aesthetically is the discoloration of the ivory covering on the keys." I answered. "The real problem is internal. I bought an entire set of new strings, but the hammers, dampers, and soundboard were all decayed. I had to gut the entire thing and start over."

"Why is the outside not in the same condition?" He asked.

"The people here have always tried to keep the piano in good condition… on the outside." I replied. "But there have not been any musicians here for a long time, and so no one realized that they needed to check on the mechanisms and parts inside."

"Ah," he said, "So when you lifted the top board…"

"I was absolutely horrified." I finished, wincing. Edward laughed, and I marveled at the sound. I could not believe how insanely happy it made me to hear this one simple sound. I once again saw Jasper smirking, this time joined by Nio. I decided that it was time for me to go… again.

"I am so glad you all could come tonight," I said, addressing all of the Cullens, "and I hate to have to run out on you again, but I really need to go."

"Not at all," Carlisle answered, "It is time that we were leaving anyway." They were halfway to the door before I remembered something.

"One moment, please." I said before they could get too far. I went to my desk and wrote down the lyrics that Esme had helped me finish earlier. At the same time I grabbed Nio's present, which, ironically enough, was also in a standard letter envelope. I folded the piece of paper and walked back toward the Cullens, flinging Nio's gift at him, and handing the paper to Esme.

"Thank you." I said sincerely. She took the paper, surprised.

"Read it twice;" I cautioned, "It isn't as morbid as it seems at first glance." I smiled, and once again said goodbye to the Cullens. As they left, Nio became my surrogate mother again.

"_Seriously, Iz. You haven't slept in three days. Go. Now."_

"_I'm going."_ I replied, rolling my eyes. _"Now get off my back for two seconds. And wait until I'm awake to open your present."_ I walked over to my couch and sat down in the middle of it. I pulled my legs up so that I was sitting cross-legged, and slipped into a blissful sleep.

* * *

**Edward Cullen**

The first thing we did when we returned home was to inspect the paper Bella had given Esme. On it were the finished lyrics to the song I had heard her working on in the parking lot at the school.

_I dreamed I was missing  
You were so scared  
But no one would listen  
'Cause no one else cared_

After my dreaming  
I woke with this fear  
What am I leaving  
When I'm done here?

So if you're asking me  
I want you to know

_[Chorus]__  
When my time comes, Forget the wrong that I've done  
Help me leave behind some, Reasons to be missed  
And don't resent me, And when you're feeling empty  
Keep me in your memory, Leave out all the rest  
Leave out all the rest_

Don't be afraid  
I've taken my beating  
I've shared what I've made  
I'm strong on the surface  
Not all the way through  
I've never been perfect  
But neither have you

So if you're asking me  
I want you to know

_[Chorus]__  
_

_Forgetting all the hurt inside you've learned to hide so well  
Pretending someone else can come and save me from myself  
I can't be who you are_

_[Chorus]_

Forgetting all the hurt inside you've learned to hide so well  
Pretending someone else can come and save me from myself  
I can't be who you are  
I can't be who you are

I understood what the song was saying immediately, but my family was a bit confused.

"I've read it five times, and I can't make it _not_ sound morbid." Emmett said bluntly.

Even Esme did not fully understand the meaning, though she understood enough that she realized it was not meant to be morbid. My family began discussing what the lyrics meant and how they applied to Bella. This continued for a few minutes before I cleared my throat. The room went silent as my family turned to me.

"I think she meant that it was not meant to be morbid because she was not truly ruminating on her imminent death, but reminiscing about her mistakes in life." I commented. "It sounds as though her mistakes are unable to be remedied, at least in her mind, and that she hopes that the people she leaves behind can at least remember the good along with the bad. She fears that she is not strong enough to overcome these mistakes, and does not wish others to suffer for it. The only part I cannot figure out is the bridge at the end. It only makes sense if someone else wrote that particular piece of the song about her. Someone is telling her that she is stronger than she thinks. I would assume Tony wrote that part.

"How did you get all that from that one sheet of paper?" Esme asked, astonished. I shrugged.

"I read it." I replied simply. "And I could be wrong. The only way to be sure would be to ask Bella or Tony."

"Why were you so quiet earlier?" Alice asked. "I expected you to ask a lot more questions."

"I preferred to watch and listen." I answered, shrugging.

"'Watch' being the operative word." Jasper joked, smirking. I scowled, mostly angry because he was right. I had been so preoccupied studying Bella; I had almost forgotten that we were supposed to be making inquiries. The few questions I had posed were only the ones my family had not already asked, and were not thinking of. I wondered why that was; I had always been a curious person, asking questions and challenging the answers.

The rest of my family continued their discussion of the events of the evening while I gave myself over to introspection. I thought back to my behavior since I met Bella, and none of it made any sense. Though I had admitted to both Alice and myself that I had feelings for Bella, I had not truly examined these feelings. Realizing this, I decided that perhaps knowing what it was I felt for Bella would be a good thing. Who knew, it might even help me better control myself around her.

Again I turned a retrospective eye on the past month or so, this time focusing on my feelings instead of my behavior. Up until now, I had ignored my feelings on purpose, not wanting to admit them to even myself. Wishing to prevent further self delusions, I forced myself to think about what exactly I felt for Bella.

My heart had twisted with pain as she was explaining what had happened to her in Italy, and I admired her astounding strength and selflessness, but as I looked back, I realized that there was one event that had brought to light the true depth of my feelings for Bella.

At the hospital, Bella had made it sound as if her disease was irrelevant because her survival was assured. Tonight, though, we had found that this was not the case at all. When I heard that Bella could actually die, it was as if the world disappeared. My mind became numb, completely rejecting the idea of a world without Bella. Seeing her in front of me, I snapped back to reality and dismissed the reaction. However, as I looked back, I realized that not only could I not imagine a world without Bella; I could not live in a world deprived of her beauty and strength. At first, I could not understand why this was. I then came to one of the most unexpected revelations I had experienced in my century of existence.

I was in love with Bella Swan.

* * *

**Bella Swan**

The Protettori do not sleep like humans. When humans sleep, their brains send random electric impulses, disallowing coherent thoughts. When we sleep, our brains remain coherently active. We are able to think, formulate, or come up with solutions to problems. It is a valuable time for both retrospection and introspection.

As I slept, I mostly thought about Edward. This frustrated me increasingly, until I was finally forced to ask myself why. I desperately needed to know why my thoughts always turned to him. As I thought about this I quickly came up with the answer… and if I was being completely honest with myself, I already knew the answer.

I loved him.

This was the only logical explanation. My earlier reaction to the idea of hurting Edward had already proved that. The only question was how much I loved him. As Edward's face floated in my mind's eye, I found my answer. My world could no longer exist without him. I was in way too deep. My love for him was both unconditional and completely irrevocable.

As I woke up, this thought disturbed me. I could very well die soon, which meant that a relationship with Edward was impossible. I could never in good conscience let him watch me deteriorate while being able to do nothing about it.

_Assuming he reciprocates your feelings._ I reminded myself, wincing. Edward may not even have the same feelings, which would make all of this a moot point.

"_Oh, I'm pretty sure he feels the same way."_ Nio commented, amused. I rolled my eyes, used to his constant eavesdropping on my thoughts.

"_I had a thought."_ Nio continued. _"What if you simply stepped down from being the Capa?"_

I blinked in surprise; the thought had never occurred to me. Nio continued.

"_If the other Protettori decide that they don't want a Capa, you could step down, and then be free to become a vampire. You don't have to die!"_

I blinked again, shocked and relieved. I had to talk to the other Capas, but if it was possible, this would be a huge weight off of my shoulders.

But could it really be that simple?

Maybe I would actually talk to Edward at school on Monday.

* * *

**A/N I know I said Jasper would become more important, and he absolutely will. I just want to do some more with B&E first. Jasper WILL have his moment. That part at least, is semi-planned out in my head. It will be completely different by the time I actually write it, but whatever, lol.**

**Hope you guys liked this one, tell me EXACTLY what you think.**

**And, one last time, the lyrics belong to the song Leave Out All the Rest by Linkin Park.**

**As always, there are links on my profile: Tony's painting, both of Bella's pianos, and the song Bella plays for the Cullens.**

**Whew!**


	10. Resolving

**A/N I know, I know, this took FOREVER! I am really sorry, I have absolutely no idea why it took so long, but I think you'll like it. This one is all Bella's POV, but there is some fun interaction with Edward ;) Next chapter, it will change POV's again.**

**Thanks again to my beta, sunflower3759**

**Fair warning, I'm introducing someone you definitely aren't expecting to see. =)**

**As always, I own nothing. *sniffs***

* * *

**Resolving**

That morning, before Nio and I could even think about opening our birthday presents, we got a call from Charlie. Apparently, Mihaela had woken Billy up this morning, because he had showed up at Charlie's house asking to speak with us.

Without hesitation, Nio and I sped through the woods toward Charlie's house. When we arrived, we did not pause, but sped through the door and stopped in the living room. Charlie was sitting on the couch next to Jake, who had driven his father there. Billy was sitting across from them in his wheelchair. As Nio and I stopped in front of them, Charlie and Billy blinked in surprised, while Jake, having heard us, simply looked up. I immediately turned to Billy.

"What is going on?" I asked, considering for the first time that he had simply come to bring news of some sort.

"I got a visit from my grandmother last night." Billy answered gruffly. "She actually made me tell her why she was there. One of the oldest members of my tribe, and Mihaela walks in and I feel like I'm eight years old again."

"She has that effect on people." Nio replied stoically, still angry that Billy had told the pack nothing about the reason we left Forks. Realizing he was not going to get very far with idle chit-chat, Billy decided to get straight to the point.

"I called the pack together this morning and explained why I did what I did and why I never told any of them about it." He explained. "I know you both well enough to know that you aren't angry with me because I asked you to leave; you would have believed that I was protecting my tribe. You're angry with me because I never told anyone why you left."

"You and Jake are our family, Billy." I said quietly. "Not to mention Quil, and everyone else we count as our brothers. You let them believe we left without reason; they believed we had abandoned them, and you said nothing. I know you wanted to protect your tribe, but why would you hurt them like that?"

"Because I was angry;" Billy answered "Everyone but me seemed to know who and what you were, and my pride got in the way of good judgment. It was petty and egotistical, and I am sorry for what I did."

"I know," I replied, feeling his sincerity, "and as long as you have explained everything to the pack, we are again on good terms."

"He told us the same thing he just told you." Jake interjected. "Everyone knows the truth now."

I smiled thankfully. It was good to have the rest of my family back.

The tension broken, Charlie turned on a game that he and Billy wanted to watch, while Nio, Jake, and I moved to the kitchen to talk. Immediately, I turned to Jake.

"How are you holding up?" I asked.

"Okay, I guess." He answered, sighing. "I'm pretty ticked off, but the rest of the pack just brushed this whole thing off like it was nothing. Said that my dad was just doing what he thought was best, and that we had to respect that. It's bull crap if you ask me."

"Are you really mad because Billy asked us to leave, or because he lied to you about it?" Nio asked.

"Stop being so insightful, it's annoying." Jake answered huffily. Nio laughed.

"Don't let this eat at you for too long, Jake." I said. "He is your father; you two need each other."

"Yeah, I know." He answered.

"Hey, I have an idea." Nio blurted out of nowhere. "We should all go do something fun today."

"Like what?" Jake asked, brightening a bit.

"I'm not sure." Nio admitted. "I hadn't thought that far ahead."

Jake and I laughed, while Nio rolled his eyes.

"Well, it is almost lunch time." I commented. "We could start with that."

"Sounds good," Jake agreed, "I'm starved."

"Good." I replied, smiling. "You can eat whatever Nio and I order."

We spent the rest of the day wondering around, walking, talking, and doing nothing. It felt good to just relax with a friend for a while. Though there were always other things in my mind, doing and talking about only trivial things was a welcome change to my hectic life. The only thing constantly floating through my head was Edward, but I was becoming rather used to this. Instead of fighting it, I simply let it be. Fighting would only make it worse anyway. Whatever was happening between Edward and I would eventually either resolve itself, or end. Though it all but killed me to think of the latter, I knew that all I could do was wait and let whatever would happen, happen, good or bad.

That afternoon, we returned to Charlie's house and bid Jake and Billy goodbye. Nio headed to the mansion, and I decided to continue my attempts at keeping my thoughts away from anything important by going into the backyard to finish reading Jane Eyre. I had only been reading for a few minutes when I heard someone approaching through the forest behind the house. I soon recognized Edward's light, quick footsteps, and felt an overwhelming sense of happiness at the thought of seeing him again. I shook my head, quickly gaining control of myself again. Just as I was about to go greet him, Charlie stepped out into the yard. He was agitated about something, and I could tell he wanted to speak with me. I turned to him, concerned.

"Are you okay, Charlie?" I asked, frowning. His eyes narrowed.

"Where were you these past few days?" He asked sharply.

"There was something I had to take care of." I answered evasively.

"Stop lying to me!" He barked. "I told you and Tony that I wanted nothing to do with anything non-human; that doesn't mean I want nothing to do with your lives outside of this nonsense."

"This 'nonsense' happens to be an integral part of our lives, Charlie." I replied.

"And you abruptly leaving town was part of it?" Charlie asked sarcastically.

"Yes." I answered quietly, but with an edge of frustration. "Everything we do outside of that ridiculous high school and our time spent here has to do with the supernatural world. _Our world_, Charlie. I am truly sorry that it has caused you so much pain, but we cannot separate ourselves from it. As much as you wish we were, we are not human. You either want nothing to do with our world, or you are angry because we refuse to answer questions we know you do not want to hear the answers to. I am sorry Charlie, but you are going to have to pick a side of this fence you are riding. You simply cannot have it both ways."

Sputtering angrily, Charlie turned and stormed back into the house, slamming the door behind him. Sighing, I turned back to the forest. I could hear and feel Edward waiting there.

"I am sorry you had to hear that." I said.

"Believe me, I have seen, and been a part of, my share of family arguments." He answered, stepping out of the trees. "I understand completely. I can come back another time."

"Not at all," I replied. "Besides, I need the distraction. Did you need something?"

"I simply wanted to apologize." He answered.

"For what?" I asked, confused.

"For my attitude toward you recently," He replied, "in my attempts to control myself around you, I have allowed myself to become rather cold when interacting with you. It was rude, and I am truly sorry."

"As am I," I said, "I believe I have done the same."

"Truce?" He said, extending his arm for a handshake.

"Of course." I answered, returning his smile and reaching to shake his hand. The moment our hands touched, we both froze; a connection forming that was not there before. I was shocked that this cataclysmic intensity between us was caused by such a simple touch. We both realized at the same time that we were still holding each others' hands. We let go simultaneously, and looked at each other for a moment.

Though I was shocked by what had transpired, I also felt a remarkable sense of rightness with it. I knew that whatever happened, Edward and I would both be fine.

"You seem less worried than I would have thought." He commented. I pondered this a moment.

"I suppose you are right." I replied. "I recently decided to at least try to stop worrying so much about whether or not we will kill each other. I am simply going to let what will be, be."

"You are not worried at all?" He asked skeptically.

"I did say try." I replied, smiling wryly. "I will always worry about accidentally hurting you, but I believe we are mostly out of the deep water. It is still challenging, yes, but it has become easier to be near each other."

"True." He said thoughtfully. "But no less dangerous."

"True." I sighed, echoing his words. We stood there in a comfortable silence for a few moments until suddenly; there was a noise in the trees. Apparently, I had an unannounced visitor. Judging by the lightness of the footsteps, I concluded that the surprise visitor was a vampire. I stiffened, and Edward's nostrils flared. I could not tell which direction the person was moving, as he changed positions too quickly for me to tell where he was going or coming from.

"Anyone you recognize?" I asked under my breath. He shook his head. I contacted Nio next.

"_Should I be expecting someone?"_ I questioned him.

"_No one from here is headed that way."_ He replied, seeing what was going on. _"Should I be worried?"_

"_I am not sure yet. I will keep you posted."_ I ended our conversation, concentrating on the issue at hand.

"Nio has not sent anyone either." I informed Edward quietly.

"Then who could it be?" He asked, also keeping his voice down. I simply shrugged, trying to pinpoint the intruder's location.

"You must have some idea." He insisted.

"Oh I have a few ideas." I replied darkly.

"Which are…?" He prompted.

"Well," I replied, "Best-case-scenario; the person is simply curious."

"No," He said, "I can read his mind, and he is deliberately attempting to confuse us, I simply cannot see why."

"Okay," I countered, "slightly worse, but still a manageable scenario; he was hunting and wants to chase us off."

"I do not think so," Edward negated, "His thoughts do not feel thirsty."

"Nor do his emotions." I sighed.

"Then why even suggest…"

"Because based on the way he is acting, there is only one more possibility," I interrupted, "one last scenario that will almost invariably lead to his death."

"And what scenario is that?" He asked, surprised.

"He is here to kill me." I said flatly, allowing my pupils to dilate, and my teeth to sharpen. Edward hissed, lowering into a defensive crouch. I followed suit, ready to leap in any direction when necessary. We sat like that, facing each other, for what seemed like hours, but was most likely only a few tense minutes. Edward did not know what the intruder was going to do next because he did not yet know himself. After a few seconds, I closed my eyes so I could focus my attention on what I was hearing.

"What are you doing?" Edward breathed. "Is it not wiser to use all of your senses?"

"Perhaps," I responded quietly, "but only one of my senses, ordinary or supernatural, is of any use to me at the moment. Luckily for me, all of my senses are centered on my hearing, just as yours are centered on your sense of smell."

I heard Edward inhale to speak, but I shot my hand up to stop him. There was a change in the intruder's gait; he was preparing to take action. Ironically, it was not my hearing that alerted me to his location, but my scars. Because of them, my back was extremely sensitive; I could feel the slightest brush of air against it. I nearly always wore clothing that left my back exposed so that I could use this advantage to the fullest.

Suddenly, I felt the intruder launch himself at me from behind. My eyes snapped open, and I leapt forward, tackling Edward to the ground, the attacker sailing over us. A few more seconds passed, and our attacker stopped. I could hear him breathing, and knew exactly where he was, but he was doing nothing. I moved off of Edward, slipping into a crouch beside him. He sat up and moved to rise, but I placed my hand on his shoulder to stop him. Ignoring the oddly intense connection between us, I spoke, still watching the area in the trees where I knew the intruder was hiding.

"Stay down," I instructed, my hand still on Edward's shoulder. "I am going to run and lead him away. Nio will have people ready to trap him when I get to the mansion. Stay here until he follows me, and then go home."

"No!" He said angrily. "I am not going to leave you alone with someone who is attempting to murder you!"

I broke my staring contest with the trees to look over at Edward. He was staring at me with a potency that was only matched by my own. I locked eyes with him, making sure he would see how serious I was.

"He is after _me_, Edward." I insisted with an intensity that shocked even me. "If he somehow got to you, if he hurt you, I could never forgive myself."

Surprised, Edward blinked a few times before responding.

"I believe I can understand that." He said. "At least let me leave first. I will go a different way and see if I can help Tony."

"It is still too dangerous." I protested.

"I do not care!" Edward hissed. "I do not want anything to happen to you either. The only reason I am suggesting leaving you even for a short time is because I know you will not do anything otherwise."

"Fine," I said, gritting my teeth, "go straight to the mansion, and do not try to double back and get behind this maniac."

Edward nodded and darted into the trees. My attacker still had not moved, and so I readied myself to run. After a few moments I bolted into the trees, darting through the forest along a different route to the mansion. As I suspected, the intruder followed. It was difficult for me to stay ahead, not only because I was a protettore but because my illness made me weaker than I should be. Somehow, I was still able to outrun my pursuer, and soon I was nearing the mansion.

"_Get ready,"_ I warned Nio, _"He is right on my tail."_

I was beginning to wonder why my pursuer was letting me stay ahead of him, because judging by his gait, he was holding back. Before I could ponder this much longer, I saw the clearing where the mansion was located up ahead. As I broke out into the clearing, the attacker stopped. I froze in the middle of the clearing, trying to make sense of his behavior. Suddenly, I heard the click of a rifle's hammer being pulled back. I heard a soft whooshing sound from behind me, and before my brain could even register surprise, I felt the current of air on my back change. I instinctively dodged to my right, slamming my left hand down and catching the object that had been shot at me. Looking down, I saw that it was a tranquilizer dart, though what I smelled in it was definitely not a tranquilizer. I spun around, intent on confronting my attacker, but he was already gone.

On the other side of the clearing, the rest of the Cullens appeared. Edward and Nio appeared at my side, and Edward's family quickly joined us. I simply continued staring at the spot where the attacker disappeared. My reverie was broken when Alice spoke.

"Sorry to barge in unannounced," She explained, "but I saw something was wrong, and we wanted to make sure there was nothing we could do to help."

"No need to apologize;" I assured her, "I am actually glad you all are here." I turned to Carlisle.

"Doctor Cullen," I sighed, "I am sure this is a pointless request, but please tell me this is not what I think it is." I handed him the dart, and he held it to his nose.

"It is Potassium Chloride." He said, alarmed.

"The stuff they use to execute people?" Emmett asked. All of the Cullen women winced.

"Yes, Emmett," I replied, "and this is extremely disconcerting."

"What does it mean?" Edward asked, concerned.

"It means our enemies are getting smarter." Nio replied angrily.

"No, this goes beyond mere brain power." I disagreed. "This act required knowledge."

"What do you mean?" Edward questioned, his eyes narrowed.

"The list of people who know that something like this would even work on me is extremely short." I answered. "Either someone is giving out information about me, or someone is digging extremely deep."

"And why would it work?" Alice asked. "You aren't human."

"My blood has been tainted, remember?" I explained. "This makes me susceptible not only to natural human illnesses, but poison-induced ones as well."

"Oh." She said simply.

"Did you all have a specific reason for coming here?" I asked.

"Alice saw you running from someone, and we wanted to make sure you were okay." Esme answered.

"Well, I was pretty sure you'd be fine." Alice corrected. "You looked more angry than worried."

I smiled in spite of myself. "You are not wrong." I told her. "But I was worried."

"Of course you were." She replied, grinning mischievously. "I wouldn't have been, with my talent, but since you had no way of knowing what the attacker would do, it was completely reasonable."

"So are you saying I am talent deficient?" I asked, smirking at her antics.

"Just a little." She answered, still grinning. We both stood there looking at each other for a moment before bursting into laughter. I had a feeling Alice and I would be very good friends.

Our laughter abruptly ceased when we heard another, slower whooshing sound. I turned and saw a rock with a piece of paper sailing at my head. I caught it swiftly and detached the paper. I heard the sound of someone running away as I unfolded it and read its message.

"What does it say?" Jasper asked. I did not answer.

"It says 'You will pay for what you have done.'" Nio answered, having seen the message in my head.

"Do you know who sent it?" Edward asked.

"No," I replied, "there are countless people who hate me enough to want me dead."

"And all of this is just because of your position as Capa?" Carlisle asked.

"Among other things," I answered evasively.

"And what exactly did you do to garner so much hatred?" Rosalie asked snidely. I am normally a relatively calm person, but her attitude problems were really starting to annoy me.

"Humans would call any one of us a monster." I replied, albeit indirectly. "Let's just say I know what it is like to be a true monster. There are many abhorrent things in my past, none of which I am proud of, and I will spend the rest of my existence regretting them. This person could hate me for any one of these things." I stared Rosalie down, letting her know I was done with her disrespectful attitude. She opened her mouth to speak again, only to be cut off by Emmett.

"Let's go home, babe." He said casually. "I think they've got it from here."

They prepared to run off toward their home, but before they could move, there were more footsteps in the trees. This time though, I was not worried in the slightest; I knew these footsteps as well as I knew Nio's or Charlie's. I turned with the sound, which stopped directly behind Edward, who hissed. I smiled, and touched my fingers to my lips, telling him to remain quiet. He stared at me, surprised, as I stepped around him and walked toward the trees.

As I reached the trees, I walked around the one where I heard the sounds stop. I walked around a few times, looking around as if I was searching for something. On my third time around, I heard something falling toward the top of my head. I quickly took a small step back and caught the little girl who had jumped down. She was about the size of a five, or maybe six-year-old child, with long, curly, bronze colored hair. She had dark brown eyes that were nearly the same color as mine and Nio's, and her skin was a beautiful creamy white. Giggling hysterically, she still managed to squeeze a few words out.

"Hello Bella." She said, fighting her laughter. We played this game often, and she always seemed to find it just as funny as the last time.

"Hello Nessie." I replied, smiling down at her. I darted back to Nio and the now astonished group of vampires. Having finally quieted her laughter, Renesmee looked around at the Cullens curiously.

"Hello," she greeted them politely, "I'm Renesmee."

"Hello," Esme answered, "my name is Esme. Are you a human or a vampire?"

"Both," Nessie answered, "My mother was a human, and my father was a vampire."

Esme's eyes widened in surprise; along with the rest of the Cullens.

"I have heard of human-vampire hybrids, but I always thought them to be myth." Carlisle said, studying Nessie closely, but addressing me. "How old is she?"

"Ask her." I said, amused. Carlisle blinked, but quickly recovered, and addressed Nessie.

"My apologies," he said, "My name is Carlisle. Do you mind if I ask how old you are?"

"No," she answered, "I was born close to six months ago, but I grow much faster than a human."

"Yes, I can see that." Carlisle replied. I could feel amazement rolling off him in waves.

"If you think that is astonishing, ask her a math or science question. The only thing more incredible than her physical growth is her mental growth." I added, smiling. Nessie reached her hand up to rest on my cheek, asking me if she could go talk to Esme. She had the unique ability to show people her thoughts and feelings through physical contact. I nodded an affirmative, and she jumped out of my arms, landing lightly on the ground at my feet. She walked over to Esme and Alice and easily struck up a conversation. I chuckled softly, and watched as she went to each of the Cullens and introduced herself. I stepped aside, letting her command her audience.

When she showed them her gift, all of the Cullens were in shock, except Edward. He had already heard her thoughts when she had talked to me, and seen what she could do. At the moment, he was actually staring at me. I looked over at him, raising one eyebrow. He shook his head, smiling wryly, and walked over to me.

"Amazing, how quickly an atmosphere can change." He commented.

"Very true," I agreed, "children in particular are very gifted at easing tension."

"Did you adopt her?" He asked curiously.

"No," I answered quickly, "why do you ask?"

"Because of what she was thinking when she talked about her parents." He answered, confused by my reaction. "When she told Esme about her parents, she was thinking that _you_ were her mother."

I looked at the ground, avoiding Edward's eyes. Unfortunately, though he could not hear my thoughts, he could hear Jasper's all too well.

"Why do her feelings worry you so much?" He asked. I looked over at Nessie, who was now sitting on one of Emmett's broad shoulders.

"Because," I answered Edward sadly, "as much as I love her, she deserves someone much better than me."

Renesmee looked up, apparently having heard our conversation, and stared into my eyes. She leapt off of Emmett and into my arms. Still maintaining eye contact, she pressed both of her hands firmly against my cheeks, showing me memories of her and me together. Throughout the entire process, one thought stood out.

"_There is no one better than you. You are _my_ Bella."_

My eyes watered, and I smiled at Nessie.

"Thank you, A Ghrá mo Chroí." I said, touching my forehead to hers.

"What does that mean?" Esme asked. I looked up, not understanding the question.

"She means the Gaelic thing." Nio said, and I realized what Esme meant.

"Sorry," I said, "I am so used to calling her that, I forget sometimes that it is not English. It is a Gaelic term of endearment. It means 'my heart's beloved' or 'my darling.' I have used it for Nessie since she came here."

"It's beautiful." Esme replied simply.

Suddenly I saw Nio throw an envelope my way. Nessie could not see the envelope, and the sound of something flying at her head spooked her. She jumped sideways out of my arms before I could stop her. Luckily, she jumped toward Edward, who reached out and caught her. I caught the envelope, glaring at Nio the entire time. He winced, and immediately apologized to Renesmee. She nodded absentmindedly, already absorbed in a silent conversation with Edward. The amusing thing was that he seemed just as enraptured as she was. I chuckled, looking down at the envelope in my hand. It was the birthday present from Nio that I never got to open.

"Where is yours?" I asked him.

"Oh, I opened mine already." He said, winking. "Thank you, by the way." I rolled my eyes. Since he was so passionate about art, I had bought him two tickets to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. I had planned on going with him, but it seemed I would be unable to attend. Opening my own gift, I saw that Nio had gotten the same idea and bought me two tickets to the Boston Symphony Hall, which happened to be my favorite American concert hall. The date on the tickets was the same as the date on Nio's. I sighed.

"I am sorry, Nio." I apologized. "If I had known, I would have picked a different day."

"Well that's the point, isn't it?" He replied, chuckling. "Neither of us was supposed to know."

"Fair enough." I replied, smiling. I looked up at Nio, but he was smiling at something to my left. I turned my head and saw that Edward was crouched down in front of Nessie, looking at a butterfly she had caught and was holding in her hands. She placed it in Edward's palm, where it stayed for a few moments before flying away. I smiled; I never would have guessed that Edward was fond of children. I turned back to Nio, albeit with a fair amount of difficulty, only to find him smirking at me. I rolled my eyes and was about to ask if he wanted to return the extra tickets when he grabbed one of mine from me. He walked over to Edward and handed him the ticket, and Edward looked over at me curiously. I shrugged, amused as always by my brother's antics.

"The ticket is yours if you want it." I assured Edward. "We always buy out one of the center tables at the Hall. You are welcome to sit there, or trade the ticket in for a different seat."

"Thank you both," he replied, "that is very generous of you."

"I am not sure it can be counted as generosity unless it constitutes a significant loss of resources for the party in question." I said.

"You could have returned it or thrown it away," he replied, "That you gave it away instead was extremely generous." Edward abruptly raised an eyebrow at Nio, who was offering him a pad of paper and a pen. From what I could tell, Nio had silently asked Edward which members of his family would like either of the events, and Edward was slightly confused by this. When I showed Nio this, he rolled his eyes and told Edward that he wanted to give one of the Cullens his extra ticket, and purchase tickets for the others. Edward, now considerably surprised, took the paper and pen, writing down what tickets Nio should buy. When he gave it back, I saw that Edward had requested two tickets for the Boston Symphony Hall, and one for the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Nio and I both frowned, confused; Edward had asked for only three more tickets which, with Nio's extra, still left two of the Cullens unaccounted for. I raised an eyebrow at Edward, who indicated that he would explain later. Nio and I shrugged, and Nio went inside to call in the new ticket order. This entire silent conversation lasted less than a minute, but it was long enough for the rest of the Cullens to become slightly confused; except for Alice, of course.

"Thank you very much," Alice said, "that will be a lot of fun."

"I am sure it will." I replied, smiling. "Thank you all for coming tonight, it was extremely kind of you." I took a step backward, planning to pick Nessie up from where she had fallen asleep on the ground behind me. Unfortunately, I overestimated the distance between her and I, and ended up tripping backward over her sleeping body. I fell backward, but before I could hit the ground, or worse, Nessie, Edward's arm caught me from behind. I knew it was him because of the reaction the contact caused me. This time, though, there was something besides this reaction that confused me. For almost two years, anything that touched the skin on my back caused me severe pain; but when Edward caught me, there was none. No pain, not even a slight bit of discomfort. He helped me stand, looking as confused as I felt. Neither of us spoke; it was actually Jasper who broke the silence.

"How is that even possible?" He asked. "I felt your reaction when Esme barely touched you, and this should have been much worse."

"I am not sure," I replied, "I—

I stopped speaking suddenly; a thought struck me, but I did not want to voice it out loud.

"Did you figure out what happened?" Jasper asked, picking up on my revelation.

"Possibly," I answered evasively, "but it is just a theory." Thankfully, Alice rescued me from having to go into detail.

"Oh well, it doesn't matter anyway." She interjected. "Are you ready to go home, Jazz?" Turning to Jasper, but not waiting for an answer, she grabbed his hand and they ran off into the forest. Esme and Carlisle, catching some signal I had missed, followed suit, bidding me farewell. Edward was the only one left, an all-too-common occurrence these days.

"Would you mind if I asked you something?" Edward asked.

"Not at all," I replied, picking Nessie up off of the ground, "but would you mind walking with me, I would really like to put her in her bed."

"Of course," he said, "lead the way."

We walked in silence, though not uncomfortable, as I led the way into the mansion. We walked up a flight of stairs that ended at a door, where I keyed in a code on a keypad next to it, and stepped through. Ever curious, Edward commented on this.

"That is a bit too much security for a place this far removed, is it not?" He asked.

"Not at all," I replied, "more people know we are here than you would think, and we have sensitive information here. The upper floor and basement of the mansion are only accessible to certain people. The upper floor holds the children's wing and the medical wing. The basement holds the history wing and the operations wing. The ground floor, which you have seen already, is where we house outcasts who need help, or transients who need a place to stay for the night. There are bedrooms, restrooms, and even a kitchen and eating area. It also has various sitting rooms where guests can be entertained, and the ballrooms that serve as studios for Nio and me."

Edward remained silent, but I could feel that he had questions biting at his tongue.

"Spit it out, Edward," I said, grinning, "Unasked questions can only haunt you."

"Well, the medical and children's wings speak for themselves," he began, "but what are the history and operations wings?"

"The operations wing is our base of operations, if you will pardon the pun." I answered. "Everything from finding orphaned or abandoned children, to hunts like the one I led for James are planned and executed from there."

"And the history wing?" Edward prompted.

"The history wing holds the sensitive information I mentioned earlier." I said. "There are portraits of all of the Capas and their twins, beginning with Didyme's and Aro's. There is also a room containing the Capas' journals, also beginning with Didyme's. Both are traditions she started, though we are only allowed to read the journals of those Capas who have passed away, unless the surviving ones say otherwise. Unfortunately, there are only four of us left, so there is not much we have not read." Having reached Renesmee's room, I laid her in her bed, pulled her blanket over her, and kissed her forehead. I then rejoined Edward, who had waited at the door, and we walked, again in silence, back through the mansion and across the clearing. We ended up a few hundred feet into the trees before Edward spoke.

"I have one more question." He said hesitantly, standing about five feet across from me.

"And what is that?" I prompted.

"Why do you think that I am the only one who does not hurt you when I touch your back?" He asked. "You said you had a theory."

"Oh, It is much more than a theory," I replied, "I know exactly why you did not cause me pain."

"Then why did you say nothing before?" He asked.

"Because I am not so sure you will like the answer." I replied bluntly.

"Try me." He challenged. I hesitated, but decided that it was best to have everything out in the open.

"I was not lying when I said that I could not live with myself if anything happened to you." I said quietly. "I believe this is why I did not register any pain when you touched my back. You saw my reaction to Esme. Hurting you would kill me, so my mind and body are doing everything they can to prevent that."

"So you do not want to hurt me because you are worried for my safety?" Edward asked, confused. I almost laughed at this gross underestimation of my feelings.

"No, Edward. I do worry, of course, but that is not why hurting you would kill me." I replied.

"Then why?" He questioned. I looked him in the eyes before I spoke again.

"I care for you too much." I began. Looking into his eyes, it was as if someone else was speaking for me; I no longer had control of my words, and whoever did, threw caution completely to the wind.

"I love you, Edward." I said, relieved to have finally said it out loud. I could no longer look at Edward, whose eyes had widened considerably, so I looked at the ground next to him as I continued.

"I am not sure I would know how to live anymore if you were gone. It is inexplicable, irrational, and it puts you in a great deal of danger, but it is true, and it is the reason I cannot hurt you." As I finished, still staring at the ground next to Edward, a single tear slid down my cheek. But before it could fall, a hand appeared and gently wiped it away. I looked up, shocked, and saw that Edward was now only inches from me. Instead of removing his hand, he turned it over, caressing my cheek with the back of his cool fingers, holding my gaze the entire time.

"Bella," he said softly, "I have lived with three couples for sixty years, and two long before that, but I never realized I was missing anything until I met you. Despite the danger we pose to one another, you have brought me a joy I never imagined I could feel with anybody." He paused, still holding me with his eyes.

"I never could have imagined loving anyone as much as I love you." He continued intensely. "I almost hate saying that; the words do not adequately convey what I feel for you."

"I know what you mean." I said, slightly breathless. Without really knowing what I was doing, I raised my hand and began tracing the contours of his face. When I realized what I was doing, I blinked, and started to remove my hand, but Edward caught it and held it there. Closing his eyes, he turned his face into my palm and inhaled deeply. When he opened his eyes, he kissed my palm.

Then, with a mischievous glint in his eyes, he latched onto my wrist, flung me onto his back, and proceeded to sprint through the trees. I laughed, amused and exhilarated at the same time. It was not a long run, he ran in a large circle around the mansion's clearing, and we ended up back where we started. In one fluid movement, he lifted me off of his back and set me down in front of him. Right in front of him, really; we ended up only a few inches apart yet again. We said nothing. Edward simply stared at me intensely, and I did not understand the emotions I felt from him.

"Is something wrong?" I asked; my eyebrows furrowed. "You feel conflicted about something."

"No," Edward said, "nothing is wrong, though I do feel conflicted at the moment."

"About what?" I asked, concerned. He said nothing, still just looking at me, but I felt one side of his conflictions win out. The next thing I knew, his mouth had covered mine in a kiss, his hand supporting the back of my neck. I was amazed. I should have guessed, after having such a strong reaction to a simple handshake, that kissing Edward would intense, but intense did not even begin to describe the experience. While I was kissing him, nothing and no one else in the world existed. My mind, more complex than a human's, was able to focus on many things at once; until now.

When we finally pulled apart, he chuckled.

"About that." He said, answering my question. "Though now, I am definitely glad I did it anyway."

"Me too," I replied, grinning. We walked to another clearing I knew that was nearby and sat down on the grass. We must have talked for hours, about everything and nothing. Sometimes we did not speak at all. Eventually, without realizing it, I began to get tired. The last thing I remembered was sitting with my back against Edward's shoulder, his arm wrapped around my waist. As I was marveling at the feeling of his skin touching mine, especially along my back, I fell asleep.

* * *

**A/N As always, I hope you all tell me what you think! I love hearing EVERYTHING you have to say, even if it's criticism.**

**I think that the next chapter will have the part with Jasper I've been promising, but it depends on how long the first part is, so don't quote me on that. ;)**

**Thank you to everyone who waited patiently, I hope this chapter didn't disappoint. =)**

**What did you think of the way I introduced Renesmee?**


	11. Remembering

**A/N - So, couldn't quite fit the Jasper part into this chapter, but I'm already more than halfway through the next one, and it's definitely in there =)**

**This chapter is in BPOV for the first bit, but the vast majority is in EPOV, which was a lot more fun to write than I thought it would be. ;)**

**Thanks to sunflower3759 for being my amazing Beta**

**Sorry this took so long, I have a good excuse this time, I have a large family, and the Holiday's are busy. Hopefully, the next chapter will be done and Beta'd by the end of next week. No promises, though, every time I promise, something happens and it goes down the toilet, lol.**

**I own nothing, sad day.**

* * *

**Remembering**

When I woke a few hours later, I was in my room at Charlie's. I was surprised; Edward had even made sure I was upright so that my back would not hurt lying down on the bed. Or maybe that was Nio; I was not sure. Standing up, I saw a flash of white in the corner of my eye. I turned my head and saw a piece of paper on my pillow. I picked it up and unfolded it, seeing that it was from Edward.

'Bella,

I rather enjoyed watching you sleep. Unfortunately, the human façade caught up with me, and I had to leave to prepare for another day of high school drudgery; though perhaps it will be less so today.

Edward'

I smiled, not necessarily happy about going to school, but less annoyed by it than usual. I quickly got dressed and went downstairs to find Nio waiting for me. Apparently still angry, Charlie was already gone.

"_Did you have fun last night?"_ Nio asked, smirking. I rolled my eyes.

"_Are you sure you want to know?"_ I asked, _"Because I will share _everything_."_

Nio thought about this for a second, and shuddered. He knew that with access to my emotions, experiencing what I felt for Edward would be extremely uncomfortable. I laughed.

"_That is what I thought."_ I said.

We gathered our things and left for school, making sure Nio's motorcycle was in the back of my truck. When we arrived, we were the only people in the parking lot. Not wanting to go in just yet, Nio and I sat at one of the picnic benches outside of the school. We sat mostly in silence, absorbed in our own thoughts. A few minutes before the first bell was supposed to ring, I noticed that Nio was thinking about something he wrote. I did not recognize the words, so I decided to ask him about it.

"_Do I get to see it?"_ I asked. To my surprise, he balked, as if he had not meant for me to see his thoughts. This confused me, as he always showed me anything he wrote. It did not happen often, but I was always able to turn his writings into a song. That he was attempting to hide this one worried me.

"_Come on, Nio;"_ I pressed, _"Why are you hiding from me?"_

"_Because I don't want it to make you sad."_ He replied, sighing.

"_Well show me anyway."_ I said. He reluctantly pulled out a piece of paper and copied down the words I had seen in his head. When he finished, he handed me the paper. As I read it, I automatically began to assign music to it in my mind.

* * *

_I remember tears streaming down your face  
When I said, I'll never let you go  
When all those shadows almost killed your light  
I remember you said, Don't leave me here alone  
But all that's dead and gone and passed tonight_

_Just close your eyes_  
_The sun is going down_  
_You'll be alright_  
_No one can hurt you now_  
_Come morning light_  
_You and I'll be safe and sound_

_Don't you dare look out your window  
Darling everything's on fire  
The war outside our door keeps raging on  
Hold onto this lullaby  
Even when the music's gone  
Gone_

_Just close your eyes_  
_The sun is going down_  
_You'll be alright_  
_No one can hurt you now_  
_Come morning light_  
_You and I'll be safe and sound_

_Just close your eyes_  
_You'll be alright_  
_Come morning light,_  
_You and I'll be safe and sound_

* * *

When I finished reading, I set the paper down, covering my face with my hands.

"_I hate myself for what I put you through, Nio."_ I said. _"You did not deserve that."_

"_Don't do that, Izzy."_ He reprimanded, pulling me into a tight hug. _"You were hurt, and it doesn't matter anymore. Don't let the past eat at you."_ He pulled back, looking me in the eye.

"_Besides,"_ he added, _"I wrote that after we escaped the Volturi; it wasn't even about anything you did."_

"_Thanks, I just remember you telling me you would never leave me."_ I replied. _"It was before we came here."_

"_And I said it again after we escaped the Volturi."_ He replied.

"_I remember,"_ I replied, _"Thank you for refusing to give up on me. But I still wish you did not have to go through my brutal insurgence with me."_

"_Come on, Iz,"_ Nio said, _"You haven't beaten yourself up this much for a long time. What's really wrong here?"_ As usual, he was right.

"_I just realized something."_ I answered.

"_And what would that be?"_ He prompted.

"_That as abhorrent as my past is, it is something Edward should know about;"_ I replied,_ "perhaps because of its abhorrence. I have no idea what he will think of me, but he deserves to know what I am."_ I smiled sadly, stood up, and walked into the school.

* * *

**Edward Cullen**

I watched as Bella walked into the school alone. For some reason, Bella was not shielding Tony, and I was able to hear their entire silent conversation as my siblings and I drove into the parking lot.

"I wonder what's wrong?" Jasper asked, sensing Bella's depression.

"From what I can tell, there was a misunderstanding about something Tony wrote, and it has caused Bella to become more retrospective than is strictly healthy." I replied, leaving out the part about me.

"She wasn't shielding her brother?" Alice asked.

"No," I replied, "I suppose she was distracted." We greeted Tony as he rose from his spot at the picnic bench and walked into the school with him. We were quickly reminded that those of us in either of the two junior level Honors Language Arts classes were to report to the auditorium. Since both classes met during first hour, the teachers had decided to gather everyone for the viewing of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, our current literary topic. As there was only one television available, this allowed both classes to stay on the same track. Alice and I were in one of these classes, and Jasper in the other. When they moved back to Forks, Tony had joined our class, and Bella had joined Jasper's. When we arrived at the auditorium, we saw that Bella, along with most of the others in either class, was already there. She was sitting toward the front, and I wanted to go sit with her, but Tony stopped me.

"Don't," he said, "She'll be like this for the rest of the day. Anyway, as I'm sure you heard, she's going to want to talk with you. Just let it wait until after school."

I reluctantly nodded, worried about Bella, and wishing I could do something. We chose seats in the back of the room, not really wishing to participate. All of us, Bella and Tony included, already knew this play well. The teachers called the classes to order, and started the video. As the movie progressed, I could see that Tony was correct. Bella did not seem to see the screen at all; she simply stared off into some oblivion, seemingly stuck in a state of melancholia. As the hour came to a close, one of the teachers stopped the movie, to be finished tomorrow, and began asking questions to make sure that the students had been paying attention. My teacher, Mrs. Smith decided to call Bella out, seeing that she was not paying attention. Bella's teacher, Mr. Berry, tried to intervene, already knowing that she was far more advanced in the subject than this class was. Mrs. Smith, however, was extremely arrogant, and had already made up her mind.

"Miss Swan," she called, "since you seem so interested in the video, perhaps you would like to quote a section from today's viewing." She smirked smugly; sure that Bella would not be able to answer her correctly.

I wanted to wipe that smile off her face, but knew that would not be wise. I was not alone in this; Tony hissed under his breath, Alice narrowed her eyes, and even Jasper frowned, angered by the teacher's obvious superiority complex. Bella did not even blink, still residing in whatever world she was visiting in her mind. Unfortunately for Mrs. Smith, she still managed to answer. Her voice, though it could be heard throughout the auditorium, had a ghostly, whisper-like quality to it.

"'Between the acting of a dreadful thing, and the first motion, all the interim is like a phantasma, or a hideous dream.'" She blinked, finally coming back to reality, and continued, her voice now back to normal.

"'The Genius and the Mortal Instruments are then in council; and the state of man, like to a little kingdom, suffers then the nature of an insurrection.'" She looked Mrs. Smith in the eye with a blank stare.

"Is that enough Mrs. Smith?" She asked politely. Mrs. Smith did not answer, frustrated, and Mr. Berry took over, dismissing both classes.

The rest of the day was uneventful, and I spent most of it worrying about Bella. I wondered what it was she thought I should know about her. Truth be told, there were some things in my past I was none too proud of as well. She had told Rosalie that she knew what it was like to be a true monster; so did I. I doubted very much that Bella's past was any worse than mine, especially since she would have been very young during any rebellious years she had. Younger than twelve, at least; there had been no disturbances in Forks before or after Bella and Tony arrived here. Surely she could not have done anything too awful when she was that young.

Bella was not in the cafeteria at lunch, and so Tony sat alone. During Biology, she smiled and talked, but the smiles never reached her eyes, and any conversation she made was meaningless. Frustrating as it was, I decided to take Tony's advice and be patient. I doubted, with her particular abilities, that she could safely stay in this depressed emotional state for long. It logically followed that she would want to speak with me soon, as my ignorance of her past seemed to be the crux of what was bothering her. I already knew she wanted to tell me, it was just a matter of when.

Unfortunately, waiting was extremely infuriating; it only made me worry more for her mental state, though I could not see it myself. Even Emmett became concerned when he saw her in Spanish. Luckily, this was the final hour of the school day, though I was not so sure being out of the school would lessen my concern. Bella would have to spend at least a few hours at her father's house before she could do anything else, which meant more waiting.

After school, I dropped my siblings off at home, and went for a run in the woods. There was no sense in me driving my family crazy worrying about Bella. After a few hours, I could not take any more; I decided to go to Charlie's house and at least see how she was doing. I arrived in the woods behind the house and heard that all three of the Swans were inside. They were gathered in the kitchen, and it sounded as if Bella and Tony were preparing to leave.

"We need to head out, Iz." Tony said to Bella. She must have answered a silent affirmative, because both of them stood and walked toward the door. Before they could leave, Charlie called out.

"Bella," he said, "Thanks for dinner. For someone who can't eat, you're a great cook." Charlie was the Chief of Police here in Forks. He was good at his job, but not so good at expressing his feelings. I sensed that this was his way of apologizing for his behavior the other day. If Bella saw this, she did not show it.

"Of course," she replied, "see you tomorrow, Charlie." She and Tony left out the back door, and I met them as they entered the woods. They both stopped, and Tony turned to Bella.

"I'm going to go on ahead; I'll see you at the mansion." He said. Bella nodded, and he ran into the woods. She then turned to me.

"Did you need something?" She asked. I frowned.

"Don't do that, Bella." I said. "I heard your conversation with your brother this morning, and I know it is dangerous for you to be this depressed for any amount of time."

"It is dangerous," she agreed, "which is why you should leave."

"Nice try." I said. I darted forward, and before she could react, picked her up and ran with her to a clearing I liked to go to when I needed to clear my head. Hopefully, Bella could do the same. She struggled at first, but I held her tight to my chest, and she stopped, realizing there was no way she was escaping. When we arrived a few minutes later, I set her down, and tried again.

"There," I said, "You cannot hurt anyone out here."

"Except for you," She argued. I placed my hands on either side of her face, forcing her to look me in the eye.

"So stop fighting me." I said softly. "Tell me what is wrong." I held her gaze, and I could see her defenses breaking down. Finally, she sighed, ready to talk.

"I am sorry," she apologized, "I need to tell you, I am just afraid to do so."

"Why?" I asked. "I promise you, your past cannot be any worse than my own."

"I would not count on it." She said darkly, stepping away. She still seemed reluctant, and I was suddenly struck with an idea.

"If I tell you my story, will you tell me yours?" I asked. In all actuality, I was just as reluctant to tell her about my past as she was to tell me hers. But if it helped her mental wellbeing, it would be worth it.

"I will tell you my story, Edward." She replied. "You do not have to tell me yours if you do not want to."

"Why do you want to tell me yours," I asked, knowing she could feel my reluctance, "Even though you are apprehensive about doing so?"

"Because you deserve to know what I am;" She answered.

"I know what you are." I replied. "You are a member of a race that until recently, I did not even know existed. I paused, taking a step toward her.

"Now," I continued, "If you wish to tell me what you have _done_, you can, but your past actions do not define you, Bella."

She looked at me for a moment before answering.

"I do want to tell you," She answered, "I cannot in good conscience continue on the path we have chosen before I do."

"To be honest, neither can I." I replied. "Besides, we really should know more about each other."

She smiled. "And we are just now realizing this?" She asked rhetorically. I smiled too, realizing how preoccupied with one other we had been, without really knowing each other at all. I closed the distance between us and gently took her arm. I guided her farther into the clearing and we sat down. We were facing each other, to make it easier to speak.

"I am still willing to go first." I said. She nodded.

"Just so I know you are not exaggerating for my benefit later." She said, smiling weakly. I shook my head, and began my story.

"About ten years after Carlisle changed me, I began to resent the lifestyle he had imposed on me. I decided to leave his home and make a life elsewhere. By then he had found Esme, and so I had no worries about leaving him alone again. I had decided that I could get around Carlisle's rules about killing humans by only hunting those who were hunting others. I chose only the most vile, cruel men as my targets; which was easy since I could hear their thoughts. It did not take me long to come to the realization that no matter the lifestyle of the people I hunted, it was still wrong to murder them. I returned to Carlisle and Esme about three years after I had left, and they welcomed me back gladly. I did not deserve their kindness." I looked at Bella, almost afraid of what I would see, but her gaze held only sympathy. She looked down, and began to speak.

"At least you made the distinction." She said sadly. "I did not care who I killed, so long as they were human. When Protettori are young, we can drink human blood with no consequence. Around the age of five, however, human blood slowly begins to form a powerful addiction. It takes a few years for us to completely lose our heads, but it is still there. It is one of the most dangerous phases we can be in. It is akin to the most powerful addiction known to man, without any of the mental or physical deterioration. We are insane enough not to care who notices or gets hurt, but still smart and strong enough to decimate entire towns. Protettori who become like this are usually captured or executed immediately, but James hid me well. I was actually labeled a serial killer in Italy, and was at the top of quite a few most wanted lists. My poor brother could only stand by and watch."

"Why?" I interrupted. "And what dictates whether the protettore in question is killed or captured?"

"Mostly it depends on if they knew what they were doing or not." She answered. "The addiction to human blood is why most of us get vampires to turn us; so that we can drink human blood without losing ourselves to it. The people who do not bother, who simply do not care how much damage they cause or how the addiction affects them, they are the ones who are eradicated. I knew exactly what would happen to me if I continued hunting humans, but I still chose to continue. I think that subconsciously, I had a sort of death wish. Nio was the only reason I did not give up on life altogether. He kept me halfway sane despite the growing hold my addiction had on my mind." She closed her eyes sadly, and I simply sat still. I thought that interrupting once was enough. I knew that she would tell me the rest when she was ready. After a few moments, she continued.

"To answer the first part of your question, Nio could not do anything about my situation because he was alone in his attempts. Getting a Protettore who feeds on humans to listen to, or participate in, a rational conversation is very nearly impossible. You have to starve them first, so that they are thirsty enough to feed on animals. Once they are rational enough to understand, they are given a choice; become a vampire Protettore and feed on humans, stay a Protettore and feed on animals, or be executed. The most important part of the process, though, is making sure you can restrain the person long enough to get the human blood out of their system. Once they are deprived of the blood, their mind and body go insane with need, and they will do anything to hunt again. Nio could not do anything about my situation because he could not contain me himself."

"But you were so young," I said, "It is difficult to believe a mere child would have the presence of mind to do half the things you claim to have done."

"I am not human, Edward." She reminded me. "The Protettori grow, physically, at about the same rate as humans. Mentally, though, their development is closer to that of a vampire-human hybrid. You saw how incredible Renesmee's mental capacity was; I was a few years older than she appears to be now, with all the intelligence and cunning of an adult."

"So how was your addiction eliminated?" I asked softly, hoping my questions were not depressing her further. She smiled, not sadly, but not exactly cheerfully either.

"You are as curious as Carlisle." She said. "When Nio and I ran away from James, we happened upon a group of nomadic protettori while traveling through Sicily. My brother begged them to help me. Most of them said that it was too risky, and they should just kill me, but there was one who supported us, and the others eventually agreed. Later we found out that he only advocated for us because he saw our eyes, and knew who we were, when we would not know ourselves for another four years. When I was again in possession of my mind, I was mortified at what I had done. I did not speak for weeks, not even to Nio. I am still often haunted by the faces of those I murdered." We sat in silence for a few minutes before I finally broke it.

"I see the faces of those I hunted as well." I said. "But to let them rule my life would be foolish, and would hurt not only myself, but the people I love."

"I know that," she answered, "I will always regret what I have done, but I am usually better at looking forward, and not letting them take over my mind."

"Why the sudden break in resolve?" I asked.

"I needed you to know what I am," she replied, "but I also feared what you would think when I told you."

"Please stop saying that." I said, exasperated. Without fully realizing what I was doing, I was suddenly less than an inch away from Bella, pulling her up so that we were standing face-to-face. This surprised her as well, and her breath caught in her throat. I pulled her even closer to me, and circled my arms around her waist, holding her there. For what seemed the hundredth time that night, I stared into her eyes as I spoke.

"I do not care what you are," I whispered fiercely, "I did not fall in love with what you are, I fell in love with _who_ you are; a kind, strong, beautiful person who hates to even think about harming someone else." I watched as Bella's face changed from shocked to grateful, but I did not give her the chance to speak.

"Bella," I continued, softening, "You are my life now. There is no way you are going to scare me off with a few horror stories, so stop worrying about your past and just be here, now."

When I stopped speaking, it looked as if a weight was lifted from her shoulders, and I came to a startling realization. I had already figured out that I would never again be able to live without Bella, but at that moment, I finally realized that the same was true for her. Though this was somewhat frightening, it also brought me comfort to know that I would never again be alone. Deciding I could not help myself any longer, I pressed my lips to Bella's, wanting to convey my feelings in some small way. She returned the kiss, and I sensed that the melancholy that had surrounded her before had gone. I decided to begin a new conversation.

"Mind if I change the subject?" I asked jokingly, mimicking my own words. She laughed, and I reveled at the sound, wishing I could listen to it forever.

"Please do," she answered, also mimicking her own words.

"It is a silly question, really," I said, "I was just wondering about something I heard when I was waiting for you outside Charlie's house."

"And what is that?" She asked curiously.

"I heard Charlie say that you could not eat." I replied. "But even vampires can eat human food if they must. So can you really not eat, or was he merely mistaken?"

She chuckled, shaking her head.

"Of all the questions," she commented, "I can, physically, eat human food. My body will, however, reject it rather vehemently. Protettori cannot consume anything but blood without a great deal of suffering. I suppose that simply did not come up during the rounds of explanations with your family."

"That is interesting." I said. "Speaking of explaining things to my family, I was curious about that as well. It seems as though you and Tony have taken great pains to hide yourselves, so why tell me and my family anything?"

"I am not entirely sure." She answered, looking thoughtful. "I suppose that, even given our first reactions to one another, I knew I could trust you, and that made me trust your family as well." We stood in silence for a few moments, until Bella's gaze became curious.

"Can I ask a silly question now?" She asked. I shrugged, there was nothing I was unwilling to tell her.

"Why did you ask Nio for only three more tickets?" She asked. "That leaves two members of your family unaccounted for."

"I left out Emmett and Rosalie," I answered, "not to be rude, but because both would rather have a few nights alone than attend either event."

"And how are the tickets going to be designated?" She asked.

"Carlisle and Esme would both prefer the Art Museum, so they will be going with Tony. Jasper would probably prefer that also, but not by much, and he will not go anywhere without Alice, who would most definitely prefer Boston Symphony Hall. They and I will be going there with you." She nodded, seemingly content with my answer.

"Can I ask you one more question?" I asked, remembering something she had said after she had played her song for us.

"Of course," she replied, "you can ask me anything."

"When you said that it had been difficult for you to play recently, you also said that you were able to that night because you had a source of inspiration." I began.

"I believe my exact words were 'I found a fantastic source of inspiration.'" She interrupted. "And I did. In fact, I am fairly certain I found my very best sources of inspiration."

"I know you did not wish to tell me before," I continued, "but I really would like to know what your inspiration was."

"Why?" She asked, with a curious gleam in her eyes. I shrugged.

"I want to know everything about you." I answered. She gave me a strange look, and I wished more than ever that I could read her mind. After a few moments, she smiled, mischievously.

"Do you really want to know?" She asked, taking a few steps back. I nodded, confused, watching as she continued to back away from me.

"Then catch me first." She challenged, grinning and darting away into the forest. I smiled and darted after her. Modestly speaking, I am the fastest of any vampire I have ever met, so I caught up with her easily. Catching her, however, was an entirely different matter. As I made my attempts, I began to see how she used the sensitivity of her scars to her advantage; it was impossible to catch her by surprise. If I was in front of her, she could see me; if I was on either side, she could hear me; and if I was behind her, the skin of her scars alerted her to any movement. She was very careful to stay far enough out of my reach that my superior reflexes could not be used to my advantage. Every time I attempted to grab her, she would leap playfully out of my reach, a laughing glint in her eyes.

Even so, this did not frustrate me as it would have with anyone else. With Bella, it was different; it did not matter if I caught her, but it was amusing to try. We went on this way for a while, until she suddenly stopped a few hundred feet in front of me. Fearing something was wrong, I stopped as well, listening for sounds or thoughts. Almost immediately, I heard the familiar tenors of the minds of my family's friends from Alaska. Their clan also hunted animals instead of humans, and we considered them our extended family. Garrett and Laurent, the two newest members of their family, had broken off, and were running toward Bella. I gathered that they were attempting to catch her also, but that they meant her no harm.

I stood by curiously, wondering how the two knew Bella. They were running toward her diagonally, from opposite sides, so as to cut off any attempts to run on her part. She just stood still, seemingly waiting for them. When they got close, she jumped straight into the air, causing them to slam into one another. Bella flipped over in mid-air, landing in a crouch next to the two would-be tacklers, rolling her eyes. I walked over, and we were soon joined by the rest of the Denali family. I greeted them as Bella spoke to Garrett and Laurent.

"You should both know better than to try something like that." Bella said, as the two stood and brushed themselves off.

"She's right," agreed Laurent, "We walked right into that one."

"No," Garrett disagreed, "We _sprinted_ into it." They laughed good-naturedly, turning to embrace Bella.

"So how do you know Edward?" Garrett asked her.

"He and his family do live here." She said sarcastically. Garrett glanced at me suspiciously; he sensed something else going on, but was unsure exactly what it was. He let it go, however, and introduced Bella to their leader, Tanya; his mate, Kate; Laurent's mate, Irina; and the last two of their group, Eleazar and Carmen. Tanya, Kate, and Irina were sisters of sorts, sired by the same vampire, and had been with each other since their transformations. Eleazar was an old friend of Carlisle's, and had joined them with his mate, Carmen, after leaving the Volturi, where he was a member of their guard. Garrett and Laurent joined their group when they met Kate and Irina. As the pleasantries were finished, Bella turned to Eleazar.

"Do you mind if I ask where you are from?" She asked him casually.

"Not at all;" he answered, "I was born in Spain, but I have been to quite a few other countries."

"Did you ever live in Italy?" She continued.

"Yes," he replied, "I was a member of the Volturi Guard for a time."

"And they let you leave?" She asked intently.

"Yes," he said, "Aro was quite gracious about it."

"Did you know you are the only one ever to have left the Volturi peacefully?" Bella inquired softly.

"No," Eleazar answered, surprised, "but why would he let me go, and no one else?"

Bella's eyes grew sad. She pulled her ring off and tossed it to Eleazar, who caught it easily. His face paled even more than usual, as he stared at the ring. In his mind I saw the same woman that I had seen in Carlisle's before. I recognized her immediately as Iverania, who had sacrificed herself for a friend who wished to leave the Volturi.

"You recognize it." She said, sighing. Eleazar nodded mutely, his features as sad as Bella's.

"She's dead, isn't she?" He asked, though in his mind he knew the answer. Bella nodded. In an instant Eleazar understood it all; he knew why Vera was dead.

"They were never going to let me live." He stated softly, looking at Bella. She shook her head.

"They had plans to kill you and your mate." She answered. "Vera could not let that happen; you were a very dear friend to her."

"I am so sorry." He said. Bella's eyes widened slightly.

"I did not tell you this to blame you, Eleazar." She said hastily. "I only told you because I thought you deserved to know what happened to your friend."

"Thank you." He replied sincerely. He walked over to Bella and placed the ring in her hand. Carmen, who was looking at Bella's profile, suddenly caught sight of Bella's back.

"It seems the Volturi left their mark on you as well." She commented sadly.

Deciding a change of subject was sorely needed, I turned to Garrett and Laurent, who were now standing with their mates.

"How do you two know Bella?" I asked. Laurent answered first.

"She and her brother saved my life." He began, and I saw the entire story in an instant, having full access to his thoughts, but let him continue. "I met their kidnapper, James, while traveling through Europe. For reasons unbeknownst to me, he asked me to travel with him for a while. I later realized that I had become an unwilling pawn in his plan to recapture Bella and Tony, who had recently escaped. He ripped off my limbs faster than I would have thought possible, and held them so that I could not move. Through vampires and other supernaturals, he spread the word that he would kill me if they did not give themselves up. They heard this, and were fortunately able to free me while maintaining their own freedom as well." As he finished, Irina slipped her hand into his, grateful that he was here. I turned to Garrett.

"What about you?" I asked. He hesitated, guarding his thoughts, and looked at Bella. She answered for him.

"Garrett saved _my_ life." She said. "It was shortly after the incident with Laurent that we came upon him and the other nomads he was traveling with. He was the one who recognized us and argued with the others until they agreed to help me. He also helped Nio a great deal; it was hard for my brother to cause me any amount of pain, no matter how necessary it was to my life and sanity. Garrett talked to me while I was insane from blood-deprivation, telling me it was for my own good, a fact I refused to recognize until the process was complete. His sympathy, though entirely unappreciated at the time, was a great help."

"So you are a Protettore as well." I commented interestedly to Garrett. If not for Bella's story earlier, I would never have guessed, as he had undergone the transformation into a vampire. In response to my comment, his pupils dilated to cover the whites of his eyes, and he opened his mouth to reveal his sharpened bicuspids and molars. He returned his face to its original form, and smiled.

"Does that answer your question?" He asked.

"Yes," I answered, "but it raises another. Why does the vampire venom not prevent your teeth and eyes from changing?"

"No one is entirely sure," he answered, shrugging, "It does, however, render it unnecessary, and therefore no longer a reflex. The changes only occur when I want them to. I can only imagine the changes are allowed because they are written into our genetic code."

"That does make sense." I replied. I opened my mouth to continue the conversation, but stopped when I noticed a confused look on Bella's face. As I watched, she laid her right hand on her left shoulder, as if making sure it was still there. Suddenly, she gasped and gripped her shoulder as if she were in pain.

"Bella"— I began.

"It isn't me." She hissed. I instantly understood; it was Tony who was in pain.

"Where is he?" Garrett and I asked simultaneously.

"I am not sure," she replied, "He cannot concentrate enough to tell me, I will have to track him."

"His scent is all over these woods, Bella." I said.

"I know," she replied, frustrated, "but I have to try." She darted off toward their mansion, and the rest of us followed.

When we arrived, she asked Brant, the werewolf who had shown up at our school, if Tony had been there tonight. Brant answered an affirmative, and Bella asked where he had gone.

"Renesmee was thirsty, so he took her out to hunt." Brant answered. Bella's face became fearful, but she answered calmly.

"Then I know where to start looking." She replied. "He always takes Nessie to her favorite hunting spot." She started running again, and I followed, joined by the Denalis. After a few miles, I caught Tony's thoughts, along with an unfamiliar scent.

"I can hear him now, Bella." I said. "But he is in a different direction from where we are headed." She paused, letting me lead. Before we could go further, however, Laurent stopped us.

"Wait." He said. Hearing his thoughts, my eyes narrowed, a low snarl escaping between my teeth.

"What is it?" Bella asked, looking from me to Laurent. His face angry, he sniffed the air, making sure he was correct. Snarling, he spat his answer.

"It's him!"

* * *

**A/N - The song at the beginning is 'Safe and Sound' by Taylor Swift, featuring the Civil Wars. Link on my profile =)**

**The next chapter is going to show how Jasper fits in to all the madness in my head ;)**

**Please tell me what you think! What do you think about my intro of Garrett and Laurent? Their back stories? Did anyone put two and two together about Eleazar before this chapter? What did you think about the EPOV? And of course, what did you think of the E&B interaction?**

**Love you all! Thanks for reading! =)**


	12. Finding

**A/N Hey guys, this was fast, I know. Unfortunately, I highly doubt the next chapter will be written this fast. Sad day, I know.**

**As always, thanks to my lovely beta, sunflower3759 for correcting my many typos, and improving some of my wacky sentence structure.**

**Thanks to pfkman23 for prompting me (unintentionally) to add more to Renesmee's back story this chapter. That's why I love when you all review, sometimes you give me advice when you aren't even trying.**

**So, I was looking up the spelling of an Italian word the other day, and realized I never looked up the plural to Capa. I had been using Capas, when it's supposed to be Cape. Just so you guys aren't confused by my abrupt change in word usage.**

**As usual, and extremely unfortunately, all things pertaining to Twilight belong to Stephenie Meyer, not me. ='(**

* * *

**Finding**

Bella sniffed the air, and caught the same scent Laurent had. She snarled furiously, her eyes suddenly turning black.

"Who is it?" Tanya asked impatiently.

"James." Garrett said calmly. "What does he want with Tony, Bella?"

"The same thing he always wants," She replied, gritting her teeth as she struggled to calm herself, "My brother and me dead."

"Is Tony all right?" Laurent asked, concerned. She shook her head.

"From what I can tell, James has dislocated both of his shoulders, and he cannot heal until they are put back." She turned to me and continued, her eyes and teeth now back to normal.

"He has almost completely closed our connection." She said. "He would have if I was not holding it open. He is fighting me, though, trying to protect me from his pain, and I cannot pinpoint his location. Can you still hear him?"

I nodded, and turned to run toward where I heard Tony's thoughts.

"Wait," Bella said, stopping me, "I should go alone. James wants Nio and me; I do not want him to become a danger to you as well."

"Bella," I said, exasperated, "Do I even need to point out how absurdly pointless that statement was?"

"No," she said, sighing, "but I had to try."

I shook my head, and began running again. Bella quickly followed, and was joined by the Denalis. I was surprised by this, but did not question it. Garrett and Laurent were obviously Bella's friends, and wanted to help her. Their family, of course, would stand by them.

We had been running for about a mile when I slowed down. I was surprised to hear three minds ahead: Tony, James, and Renesmee, who, I gathered, was hiding in a tree, wrapped in Tony's jacket to mask her scent. They were in a part of the woods where the trees had thinned. We were about fifty feet from them when I felt Bella's hand on my arm. I turned my head and saw that she was signing to me, so as not to alert James to our presence.

"**Wait here, I will go ahead."** She signed. My mouth tightened, and I shook my head.

"**When you distract him from James, he will smell us."** I signed back.** "I am going."**

She frowned, but did not argue. She drew herself up, and walked toward her brother's tormentor.

* * *

**Bella Swan**

As I walked to where James had my brother, I tried to calm myself. My anger was making it difficult for me to focus, and I knew that I would need a clear head to handle this without getting Nio or myself killed. That I could hear James talking to Nio did not help matters.

"Well Tony," James commented, "It looks like I'll have to break something else. I don't know what is taking your sister so long."

Nio said nothing as he continued to stare James unblinkingly in the eye. Before James knew what was happening, I had darted up behind him, grabbed the back of his collar, and thrown him backward into a tree about ten feet away. Edward and the Denalis appeared to the side, and I turned to my brother. I felt my eyes and teeth immediately change as I snarled furiously. Both of Nio's arms were hanging at his sides uselessly, and were covered in bruises from elbow to shoulder.

"Are you all right?" I asked through my teeth. He snorted.

"That's a loaded question." He answered. I nodded, suddenly realizing that his shirt was missing. I had sensed Nessie in a tree a bit farther back in the forest, and assumed that Nio had wrapped her in his jacket, but I could not imagine where his shirt had gone. I telepathically ask him the question, and he rolled his eyes, though you could barely tell, as his eyes had changed in response to his pain.

"James got a little over-enthusiastic about dislocating my shoulders." He answered. My eyes narrowed, a low growl escaping my lips. I struggled to recover my self-control. Edward stepped to Nio's side and began to fix his shoulders, sensing that I would be unable to do so. This being done, Nio's natural healing processes went to work, and in a few seconds, he bore no evidence of his injuries. He thanked Edward, and stood by my side. This exchange took less than a minute, but when I turned around, James was standing, waiting for me. I stepped forward, my teeth bared in a silent snarl, and my eyes, still black, narrowed to mere slits. James laughed.

"So, Bella," he quipped, "How's your back?"

I did not respond. We simply stood there, locked in a pointless staring contest. I knew that eventually, I would have to fight him, but I was determined not to attack first. I did not have to wait long; after a few minutes, he made his move. He leapt to his left, using a tree to launch himself at my right side. I dodged him easily, and we went on like this for what seemed like an hour. Tiring of this, I decided to slow him down. The next time he jumped at me, I grabbed one of his arms, using his momentum to swing him around and once again throw him into a tree. He got up again, and stopped slightly to my right. He stared at me again for a moment, and I wondered if he was really going to start that again. Suddenly, he looked at something to my right, and smiled. I followed his gaze, alert in case it was a trick, and froze. Carmen had moved, possibly to gain a better vantage point, and was now closer to James than I was. The rest of the Denalis were too intent on James and me to notice. Knowing what he was about to do, I jumped in front of her, pushing her back. Unfortunately, this left me unable to protect myself. James had jumped at the same time I did, and got there just as I shoved Carmen back. Unable to do anything else, I jumped again. He caught my left leg and threw me backward, wrenching my leg and dislocating my hip. In the split second I flew through the air, I heard both Nio and Edward growl furiously. Nio started to run toward James, but he was already gone. I landed on the ground and rolled another ten feet, snarling in pain. I stood up slowly, careful not to move my left leg more than absolutely necessary. Unfortunately, once I stood, muscle memory got the better of me. My body automatically distributed my weight evenly, and putting weight on my left leg was not a good idea. I hissed, and would have fallen if a white hand had not caught me. I looked over and saw Carlisle, along with the rest of his family, who went to greet the Denalis. Alice stayed, darting to my other side and placing her hand on my shoulder.

"Are you okay?" She asked, concerned. I was about to answer when Carlisle spoke.

"Wait, Alice;" he admonished, still supporting me, "her hip needs to be reduced first." He turned to me.

"May I?" He asked. "Or would you rather Tony did it?"

"He may not be able to." I replied, gritting my teeth against the pain. "He will not let me close our connection, and the pain may be too much."

Carlisle nodded, stepping in front of me and bracing my left hip with his left hand. He looked at me sympathetically.

"This is going to hurt." He said. "I sedate humans for this."

"I know." I answered shortly. He nodded, and swiftly grasped my left leg at the knee, lifting it up so that my thigh was parallel to the ground. Unable to restrain myself, I gasped in pain, and heard Nio do the same. Carlisle then pulled my leg forward, causing my hip to pop back into place. He set my leg gingerly back on the ground, but I became dizzy for a moment, and almost stumbled backward. Alice, seeing this, caught my shoulders and helped me remain upright. I thanked them both and looked down at my leg, seeing a rather large bruise where James had grabbed me.

"Wow, Bella," Jasper said, "You have a very high level of pain tolerance."

"No kidding," Nio commented, "I wish mine was even close."

"No," I disagreed, "you don't."

"Why not?" Nio asked.

"I did not come by it naturally." I replied quietly. He winced.

"Fair enough." He said.

"Where is my music player?" I asked, remembering that I had given it to Nio earlier in the day. This was an odd request to anyone but my brother, who knew that my healing processes had ceased to be automatic since my time with the Volturi. I now had to trigger them, hence the need for my music player. I had trained my mind to trigger my healing in response to a certain song.

"It's in my jacket pocket." Nio said, answering my question. He walked over to the tree where he had hidden Renesmee, and had started to climb it when his jacket landed on his face. I smiled at Nessie's antics, glad that her sense of humor had survived listening to the ordeal with James. Pulling his jacket off of his face, Nio looked up into the tree.

"That's very funny, Nessie." He commented dryly, putting his jacket on. This was slightly comical, as he still had no shirt, James having destroyed the one he had been wearing. He walked over to me, drawing my player out of his pocket and handing it to me. I put an ear bud in one of my ears, found the song I needed, and played it. A few seconds later, the muscles around my hip had healed, along with the bruise. I turned the player off and handed it back to Nio, who restored it to his pocket. I watched as he walked back over to Nessie's tree, and looked up again.

"All right, kiddo," he said, "you can come down now." Nessie jumped down into his arms, and the entire Denali clan tensed. I felt a strange mix of fear and anger, especially from the three sisters, though I could not imagine what Renesmee had done to cause it. Jasper started forward, but Alice, who had joined him, held him back. I walked toward Nio and Nessie, stopping about ten feet away; plenty close enough to run interference if necessary.

"She is not an immortal child." Edward said quickly, apparently attempting to allay the fears he had seen in their thoughts. Kate and Irina paused a moment, apparently willing to listen to an explanation. Tanya, however, did not believe Edward. There was no one between her and Nio to stop her as she ran toward him, intent on killing Nessie. Nio threw Nessie into my arms at the last possible moment, and turned to catch Tanya's arms. He pinned her against a tree and trapped both of her arms against her chest. Kate and Irina hissed, stepping forward, but were stopped by their mates, who knew Nio would not hurt Tanya.

"I'm sorry," Nio said, addressing Tanya, "but I can't let you hurt her."

"She's an abomination!" Tanya hissed, struggling against him.

"If you would just listen for a moment, you would see that she's not what you think." Nio replied, trying to reason with her.

"No!" She spat, glaring at him. Nio's eyes narrowed.

"Have it your way." He said dangerously. He suddenly pulled her toward him, spinning her around and pulling her back against his still partially bare chest. He kept one arm across her body, pinning her arms, while his other hand covered her eyes.

"Now you have no choice." He said. Tanya hissed furiously. When she quieted down, Nio tried again.

"Now," he said quietly, "what do you hear?"

"Your annoyingly, close heartbeat." She spat.

"Other than that." He said, rolling his eyes.

"I'm not sure;" Tanya replied sarcastically, "It's extremely loud."

Nio chuckled, now thoroughly amused.

"I can stand here all night, you know." He said, still chuckling. "What else can you hear?"

"I don't know." She answered, fidgeting impatiently.

"What do you mean?" Nio asked, once again serious.

"I can hear everyone breathing," She replied, "and a heartbeat similar to yours, which I assume is your sister's. But…"

"What?" He prodded. Tanya hesitated, but continued.

"There is another heartbeat. It's fast, like a bird, but it's too big to be a bird." She had finally stopped struggling, confused by this turn of events.

"And where is it?" Nio asked.

"Right next to your sister." She replied.

"Right," Nio confirmed, "my sister, to whom I just threw Renesmee."

Tanya froze, and Nio released her. Underneath her shock, I noticed that she was almost disappointed to leave Nio's arms. I held back a smile as Nio continued to speak with her.

"Do you believe me now?" He asked, still wary. She did not answer; she simply stared at Nessie, who was in my arms, and then turned to me with a pained look on her face.

"I am truly sorry." She said. I felt her sincerity, but I was not the one she needed to apologize to.

"You were not after me." I said softly. She immediately walked forward and apologized to Nessie, who, of course, forgave her instantly, and proceeded to show her what she was. After she had gotten over her shock, Tanya stepped back. Nessie jumped down from my arms, and began introducing herself to the Denalis, bewildering them with her story, and the unique way she told it. She then walked over to Edward, apparently wanting to have another silent conversation with him. He held out his arms, smiling, and she jumped into them. The rest of the Cullens and the Denalis began conversing with one another. This was the reason the Denalis were here; they had come to visit their extended family. Carmen walked over to me.

"Thank you." She said sincerely, referring to my intervention with James.

"Of course," I said, smiling. She glanced at Nessie, who was still with Edward.

"How did she come to be with you?" Carmen asked. I smiled sadly.

"Her mother came here seeking refuge." I answered. "She had been seduced by a vampire and become pregnant. Due to the rapid growth of the unborn child, she quickly realized that something was wrong. When the vampire found out she was pregnant, he wanted the child. Hearing about this place from a friend who was a werewolf, she ran away. When she arrived, we gave her a room. We were extremely worried; she was obviously very far along in the pregnancy. If she had come sooner, we could have helped her more. She did not realize that the child needed blood, and had been eating as she normally would, as a human. Her body was rejecting the food, and coincidentally, she was emaciated and weak. We explained that the child would try to bite its way out of her unless we took it out first. We also explained her options should things turn badly for her, which was inevitable. She told us to use vampire venom to save her if we could; she wanted to be there for her child. We agreed, and started feeding her blood, hoping we had a few days left to give her some of her strength back, but it was too late. Later that same night, the child tore through her mother's abdomen. She bled out almost instantly, we did not get the chance to try and save her." By this time, everyone from both families was listening. I looked at Nessie, who was resting her head against Edward's shoulder, and saw a tear sliding down her cheek. My heart broke for her. Though she knew it was not her fault, Nessie felt a great deal of guilt over what had happened to her mother. Edward hugged her closer to him, and she buried her face in his chest.

"So how did you end up unofficially adopting her?" Esme asked, smiling, albeit a bit sadly, at Edward's interaction with Nessie.

"That was an accident, really." I answered, with a small smile. "There have not been any other children here since she was born, and everyone else was always busy doing something else, so I ended up taking care of her. She had people looking out for her when I was gone, but when I was around, I just always ended up with her. We just sort of clicked without my realizing it."

"She's lucky to have you, you know." Esme said softly. I looked down, wishing I could believe her.

"Thank you." I said softly. I looked over at Edward and Nessie again, and I noticed that she had fallen asleep in Edward's arms. I walked over to him, intending to take Renesmee home and put her in her bed, but Edward shook his head.

"I can carry her," he said, grinning, "She will not slow me down as much."

I rolled my eyes, but did not argue. I silently asked Nio if he was staying or going, and he replied that he would stay and invite everyone back with him. I nodded, and Edward and I darted toward the mansion. We arrived in only a few minutes, and I took Nessie and carried her to her room. When I returned to the main level, Edward had been joined by the rest of his family and the Denalis. Missing Nio, I inquired as to where he had gone, and was told that he had gone to get another shirt. He had closed our connection for some unknown reason, though I was fairly certain it had something to do with his earlier reluctance to release Tanya, not because she was dangerous, but because he had enjoyed holding her. I bit my lip, trying not to smile, remembering her similar disappointment upon being released.

"What's so funny?" Emmett asked.

"Nothing, sorry," I replied, quickly composing myself as Nio appeared beside me, once again fully clothed.

"Something's funny?" He asked, looking at me curiously.

"Nothing you want to know about." I replied, smirking. He guessed immediately what I was talking about.

"Great." He groaned. Everyone except Edward and Jasper looked confused. Edward and Jasper were simply trying not to laugh, as one could hear Tony's thoughts, and the other had caught the same emotions from Nio and Tanya that I did.

"You say 'great' but it sounds like you mean the exact opposite." Tanya commented snidely.

"Yes, that would be called sarcasm." Nio replied, rolling his eyes. Amusing though this was, I knew my brother, and decided to intervene before this could turn into an argument.

"Nio," I said quietly, trying to get his attention. Tanya, though, apparently wanted to _make_ it an argument.

"Yes, sarcasm seems to be something you seem particularly adept at." Tanya continued relentlessly.

"Says the _vampire_ who, when I asked what she could hear, listed something that was right next to her." He retorted. Almost everyone now looked at least slightly alarmed. Kate and Irina, though, looked as amused as I was. They walked over to stand next to me, fighting grins of their own, as I made a second attempt at intervention.

"Tony," I said, raising my voice a bit, and using his common nickname, to get his attention. It didn't work, and I now knew why he became so irritated over my preoccupation with Edward.

"Not by choice!" She spat at Nio. "Do you manhandle everyone you fight with?" She glared at him, as if daring him to continue. His eyes flashed, and he half snarled his answer.

"Only the ones who are trying to hurt my family!" He said sharply. Tanya winced a bit at that, but showed no signs of backing down. This officially needed to end.

"Antonio!" I fairly shouted, my Italian accent breaking through, like it always did when I got frustrated. Hearing his full name finally broke him, and in turn, Tanya, out of their hostile little bubble. His head snapped around to look at me. Since he still held our connection closed, I raised an eyebrow at him, holding back a smirk. He winced, and then frowned slightly. Excusing himself, he went to his studio. Tanya developed a very sudden need to hunt, excusing herself also. Once they were gone, I didn't speak for a moment, still trying very hard to contain my amusement. Unfortunately, Kate and Irina turned to me, catching my eye, and all three of us started laughing. Kate recovered first.

"So how long do you think that will take?" She asked. Now everyone but Edward looked confused. Kate was asking me how long I thought it would take for Nio and Tanya to become a couple. She, Irina, and I, who knew our siblings best, saw through their ridiculous argument. We knew that they were overcompensating for the attraction between them.

"I'm not sure." I said honestly. "I guess it depends."

"On what?" Irina asked.

"On how long it takes them to admit their feelings." Edward said, answering for me. I nodded in agreement.

"To whom?" Kate asked, grinning.

"To themselves." I answered, chuckling.

"I don't think that will take Tanya long," Irina commented, "she knows herself pretty well."

"Same with Nio," I said, "but he's stubborn. Luckily, he has this voice inside his head that tells him when he is being an idiot."

"What kind of voice?" Kate asked. I laughed at the expression on her face.

"I was talking about me." I explained, smiling. "My brother and I are telepathically connected."

"Ah," Eleazar commented, "that explains it."

"Explains what?" I asked. He looked at me thoughtfully.

"I am able to sense any extra abilities the people around me may possess." He replied. "However, I have not been able to get a read on you at all, so I assumed that you are a shield. I sensed that your brother is a shadow, but I could not always read him either. I wondered if he had a sporadic shield, but I now realize that it was your mental connection that allowed him to share yours. Does it work with his gift as well?"

"Yes," I replied, "I do not often need to use it, but he is able to shadow me if he wishes."

Eleazar nodded and dropped the subject. Everyone reluctantly relaxed, relinquishing their curiosity for the time being. As they began to converse with one another, I felt a fair bit of uneasiness emanating from Jasper. Concerned, I walked over to where he stood.

"Are you all right?" I asked. He looked up, surprised.

"I'm fine, why?" He lied, none-too convincingly. I gave him a sarcastic look, and he chuckled wryly.

"Sorry," he apologized, "It is a bit strange, someone knowing my emotions for once." He frowned, and I felt an unexpected emotion from him.

"Déjà vu?" I said, confused. "That's odd."

"No kidding," he said, "especially since I've only been here once, and it was completely different."

"I meant ironic." I said, correcting myself. He gave me a curious look.

"Why would my experiencing déjà vu be ironic?" He asked.

"Because I have thought you looked familiar since I first met you." I answered. "It is similar to the feeling I got when we first met Charlie in Italy. Nio and I knew we could trust him because he seemed almost familiar to us."

"What about me seems familiar to you?" Jasper asked. I shrugged.

"Your facial features, I think." I replied. "But not as if I had seen you before, as if I had seen your…" I trailed off, a thought suddenly shooting through my mind like an electric charge. The force of my revelation broke through Nio's barriers, and he came rushing back into the room. Alarmed, he darted to my side, followed closely by Edward.

"Izzy, what's wrong?" He asked as he reopened our connection to see what had startled me. His eyes widened as he saw what was in my mind. I calmed myself, and turned back to Jasper.

"Jasper, what year were you born?" I asked casually. He looked at me curiously, as if wondering why on earth I would want to know that, but answered anyway.

"1844," he replied, "why?" His eyes narrowed in confusion. I glanced at Nio, but continued questioning Jasper.

"Where were you born?" I asked.

"I grew up in Houston." He answered suspiciously, now convinced that I was hiding something. I glanced again at Nio, whose eyes were widening a bit more with each answer Jasper gave.

"And what year did you become a vampire?" I asked.

"1863," he replied, now more than a little impatient. Barely managing to maintain a neutral expression, I nodded at Nio, who darted out of the room for the second time. Edward gave me a puzzled look as I turned to ask Jasper one more question.

"Are you sure you were human before your transformation?" I asked. Both Edward's and Jasper's eyes widened in surprise.

"I think I would remember being anything other than human." Jasper replied.

"Unless you were a Gemello," I said, "A twin."

"What on earth are you talking about?" He asked incredulously. I sighed. We now had the attention of the entire group.

"It is yet another long story." I said. "As I told Edward, only four of the Cape remain alive today. The Gemelli, their twins, have been killed off just as quickly. Three are believed to be alive today, but only two are accounted for; Nio, obviously, and James."

"James!" Laurent exclaimed. I nodded.

"James is the twin of Sarah, the Capa before Mihaela." I explained. "They are Catalina's children, and they were both as dedicated as any of us at one point. I suppose, after watching the majority of their peers die, their minds just snapped. You saw James, and Sarah is not much better." I paused here; the fall of Sarah and James always saddened and worried me. After a moment, I continued.

"The third Gemello was lost when he became a vampire." I began. "He was Catalina's twin, and had remained in his home state when Lina became the Capa and moved here. She had undergone the vampire transformation early, at nineteen years old, about one year after giving birth to Sarah and James. A few months later, she felt a searing pain all over her body, as if she had vampire venom in her system again. She soon realized that it was not her, but her brother, who was experiencing the pain. She tried to comfort him, but he closed his connection to her in order to spare her pain."

"Wait," Rosalie interrupted, "I thought that you and Tony were the first twins to be able to feel each other's emotions."

"That is true, to some extent." I answered. "We are the first to be able to feel the other's emotions at any given moment, but all of the Cape and their Gemelli are able to feel their twin's emotions at times of intense pain. This, Lina believes, is why her twin closed their connection; he did not want her to share his pain, though he had shared hers."

"Why?" Emmett inquired. "What does it matter?"

"Well," I replied, "If we go through the transformation with our mind closed to our twin, we lose all memory of them. This often causes the person to lose all, or at least most, of the memories of their past life, because their twin is usually an integral part of it."

"So," Edward said, "when Catalina's twin closed their connection…"

"He lost all memory of her and, most likely, of everything to do with the Protettori." I finished.

"And you think he's me?" Jasper asked, disbelieving.

"He was born the same year and place you gave for yourself." I answered. "And he became a vampire the same year as well."

"That could be coincidence." Jasper argued, pacing agitatedly back and forth across the floor. "A big coincidence, granted, but still."

"Well, what if I list a few things you would probably remember if you were him, and you stop me if I am wrong?" I asked. He stopped, looking at me warily, and nodded.

"Your last name was Whitlock," I began, already sensing by his reaction that I was correct, "You were in the Confederate Army during the Civil War, and by the time of the Battle of Galveston, you were the youngest major in the entire army, event counting your exaggerated age, which you lied about in order to enlist in the first place."

Shocked, Jasper did not speak for a moment. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Tanya re-enter the room and stand with her sisters. As I watched Jasper, waiting for him to speak, Garrett stepped up behind him, and jabbed his finger into the hinge where Jasper's jawbones met. There is a pressure point there that triggers the changes in our teeth and eyes. I looked over Jasper's shoulder and saw what Garrett was about to do, a split second before he did it. Both Alice's and my eyes widened.

"Garrett, no!" We exclaimed simultaneously. I attempted to stop him, but was too late. Jasper's pupils dilated, leaving his eyes completely black, and his back teeth became pointed. This caused his already overwrought emotions to snap, and he snarled. I leapt forward, hoping to stop him before he could hurt someone on accident. This stopped him from turning on Garrett, but he caught me by surprise, shoving me backward. I did not go far, but I landed on my back, and an involuntary growl escaped my lips at the pain. Edward was immediately at my side, and he helped me up. Trying to shake the pain off as quickly as possible, I faced Jasper. Thankfully, my pain seemed to have brought him back to his senses, but he was still too agitated to change his eyes and teeth back. I gave Alice a significant look, and she darted to Jasper's side, placing her hand in his. His head snapped over to look at her, and she let her calm and love radiate to him. He gratefully latched onto it, focusing on only Alice's emotions, and was soon calm enough for his face to resume its normal state. I, meanwhile, spun around to face Garrett.

"Was that really necessary?" I asked, half growling the words. To my surprise, Jasper answered for him, still gripping Alice's hand.

"Yes, it was." He said, sighing. "I was never going to accept this otherwise." He frowned, apparently pondering what he had learned. I softened a bit.

"Be that as it may," I said, addressing Garrett again, "A little warning would be much appreciated the next time you decide to do something stupid." Garrett winced, and nodded. I rolled my eyes, knowing he had meant no harm, and turned back to Jasper.

"Are you okay?" I asked. He nodded.

"I have a question, though." He said. I gestured for him to continue.

"How did you put it all together?" He asked. "How did you know it was me?"

"It was just a matter of puzzle pieces fitting themselves together in my head." I answered. "When I made that comment about you looking familiar to me, I was going to say that it was as if I had seen your twin. I trailed off when I realized that this could be exactly the case. It was the only explanation that made everything fit. It even accounted for your mysterious déjà vu. I don't know why I did not see it long before now; I see your portrait at least once every other day."

He started, surprised. I smiled.

"Follow me." I said, turning to lead the way to the history wing. We walked through the main floor, passing our studios, and stopping at the end of the hallway. This caused quite a few odd looks to be given, as there was no door, or really anything but the wall. I opened a hidden panel in the corner of the hallway, revealing a keypad. I typed in the code, and a large door opened in the center of the wall. I felt a great deal of surprise from the vampires, as the door was invisible until opened. Nio, who had rejoined us, walked to the door and held it open as the vampires walked in, carefully avoiding Tanya's eyes as she passed. I smirked and rolled my eyes at him as I followed them in. He sighed, closing the door behind him.

"_Were you able to contact Catalina?"_ I asked him silently. He shook his head.

"_I had to leave a message;"_ He answered, _"We'll just have to hope she gets it soon."_ I nodded.

As we entered the room, I almost laughed at the amount of confusion emanating from all of the vampires. They had entered an empty room, and with no visible windows or doors save the one we entered through. Smiling, I walked to the middle of the wall to my left, opened another hidden panel, typed in a code, and turned to the families behind me.

"Not that any of you are talking," I said, "but if you would remain silent for a few more seconds, we would appreciate it. This particular door requires voice recognition." I had always been good with technology, and put this to good use when it came to the security at the mansion. All of the vampires nodded in agreement, and Nio walked over, standing a little behind me. I pressed the button that would start the voice recognition process, and stepped back to stand next to Nio. The red light that had come on turned green and I spoke.

"La Isolato Spirito." I said, beginning the poem segment.

"Il Cuore Pesante." Nio continued. Only one phrase remained.

"Non si è Mai Perduto." We finished in unison. The trap door we were standing on suddenly opened, and we fell through the floor. We were prepared for this, however, and landed lightly on our feet. After the surprise wore off, the vampires all followed.

* * *

**Edward Cullen**

As Bella and Tony spoke, I recognized the phrases as being from an old Italian poem. I wondered how they knew it, as the author was fairly obscure in the literary world.

I froze in fear for a moment when Bella and Tony dropped out of sight. It only took me a few milliseconds to see the hole in the floor and realize that they had opened a trapdoor. Struck with a sudden, rather amusing idea, I walked forward and dropped through the trap door. I had planned to land behind Bella and grab her, finally catching her as I had been trying to half the night. I dropped directly over Bella, but she did not jump forward, as I thought she would. Instead, she jumped backward, looping her arms around my elbows and trapping my arms behind my back. I instinctively struggled, but she held me fast. I smiled wryly.

"Nice try." She said, close to my ear, chuckling softly. The feel of her breath on my neck caused a shiver to run down my spine, though definitely not out of fear. She released me and cleared the way as the others began to jump down. I finally focused on my surroundings, and saw that there were two doors in front of us. Once everyone had come down, Tony hit a button that shut and sealed the trap door above our heads. Bella walked over to the farthest door, and opened it. As we followed her in, we were all amazed with what we saw.

The room we had entered was large and rectangular. We had entered through one of the shorter walls. Along the right side, there were floor-to-ceiling bookshelves spanning an entire wall. Near the opposite end, against the other short wall, there were a few couches and chairs, apparently for reading. On the left wall were about fifty portraits, all hand-painted, and all about as large as my torso. All of the paintings depicted pairs of men and women, The Cape and their twins. A few were missing, and we were all studying them in wonder, when Esme commented on this.

"It looks as if there are holes in some of the rows." She commented, addressing Bella. "What happened to them?"

"Nio is restoring a few of the older ones." Bella answered. "This room is temperature controlled, but it was only built around fifty years ago, so age still had time to deteriorate parts of many of the portraits."

Esme nodded, and went back to studying the portraits. I was actually more interested in the bookshelves opposite the portraits. They were filled with what looked like journals, and I remembered the conversation Bella and I had on the subject. I turned to her, letting my curiosity spike to get her attention. She looked over at me, raising her eyebrows questioningly. I pointed at the journals, and she walked over.

"What about them?" She asked.

"Are these the journals you were telling me about?" I asked. Everyone else paused to listen, interested in the subject.

"Yes," Bella replied, "Every Capa writes journals to chronicle their time as Capa. Not many continue after their time is done, but it is an important task, nonetheless; especially with so many of us dead."

"Why is it so important?" Tanya asked. Nio began to answer, but Bella cut him off, apparently attempting to avoid a repeat of what happened earlier. I smiled, amused. Behind Tanya, I saw Kate wink at Bella, grinning.

"The journals hold our history." Bella answered. "We have been in hiding for so long that these journals hold the only memories of our people. They also provide advice for the current Capa, which often proves extremely helpful."

"Do you write journals?" Rosalie asked. "Since you are the last Capa, it wouldn't matter much, would it?"

"Yes, well, it has the added benefit of keeping us sane." Bella answered, keeping her expression neutral, though Jasper could feel her annoyance with Rose's attitude. To be honest, the attitude was beginning to irritate me as well. Bella paused thoughtfully, and continued.

"Eventually, though, I will most likely stop writing as often, and only when something important happens." She said. "Assuming I survive, of course."

"Garrett told me about why you're the last Capa;" Kate said, addressing Bella, "Do you mind if I ask you a question about it?" Kate asked. I heard the question in her head and groaned. Bella looked at me curiously, and turned to Kate, nodding.

"Not that you seem like a person who would do this," Kate began, hesitating, "but why don't you just have a child before you change? Does it really matter who the father is?" She paused, pursing her lips, thinking that the question sounded a lot better in her head, while Bella smiled, amused.

"Not particularly, but there are the obvious moral and ethical reasons;" She answered; "Not to mention it would be physically dangerous."

"That's an understatement." Tony said, snorting. Bella shot him a look, but Kate's curiosity was already further aroused.

"Why?" She asked. "What would happen?" She looked curiously between Bella and Tony. Bella opened her mouth, but hesitated. Fortunately, Carlisle answered for her.

"The gestation would be fatal to both her and the child she carried." He said quietly. Bella looked at him, surprised, as if wondering how he knew this. Then she blinked, laughing silently, remembering that he was her doctor now. Kate apologized, and Bella dismissed it immediately, saying that it was fine.

Everyone began spreading out, examining whatever portraits interested them, or sitting down at the end of the room to talk. I had turned to talk to Bella when I heard a vibrating sound coming from her pocket. She pulled her phone out, and a look of relief crossed her face. I raised my eyebrows at her, and she smiled, tilting her phone toward me so I could read the text. I looked at the contact name and saw that it was from Catalina. Thoroughly interested now, I looked down at the message. It was simple and to the point.

"**I'm coming."**

* * *

**A/N - So, what do you guys think of the Jasper thing? The Tony/Tanya thing? Please review and let me know what you think! =)**

**FYI, there isn't really an Italian poem, I made that up, lol. Just so no one tries to find it somewhere. In case anyone was wondering, here's the translation.**

La Isolato Spirito – The Isolated Spirit

Il Cuore Pesante – The Heavy Heart

Non si è Mai Perduto – They have Never Been Lost

**It's cheesy, I know, but that was kind of the point, it was supposed to be part of a poem. Lol**

**Like I said, I probably won't get the next chapter done as fast, but I'm working on it, I promise.**


	13. Phrasing

**A/N - Hey guys! Here's chapter 12! Or 13 if you count the preface. I know this one is longer (again), but but I wanted to end it in the right POV and in the right spot. As always, I hope you all will tell me what you think. =)**

**There is a conversation in this chapter that is spoken in Italian. I used an online translator, and I think the grammar is mostly correct, but online translators are weird sometimes, so it may not be. The translations are in bold at the end of each sentence.**

**As always, thanks to Sunflower3759 for being the best Beta ever!**

**And, of course, only the plot and original characters belong to me, everything else belongs to Stephenie Meyers.**

* * *

**Phrasing**

Not everyone found something that interested them in this room, though no one was bored, by any means. Kate, Irina, Laurent, Rosalie, and Emmett, after a cursory glance at their surroundings, gathered at the end of the room to chat. Garrett was examining the Capa journals, though he was not allowed to read them. He also busied himself studying the family trees that rested atop the bookshelves. Tony and Tanya stood slightly apart from everyone else, apparently having decided to attempt a civil conversation. Carmen and Eleazar were examining all of the portraits. One visitor in particular found one of the portraits very interesting. The frames were aligned in rows, in chronological order. Toward the end, with only three more spaces in after it, we saw Jasper. Not only him, of course, but it was a shock to see him, anyway. None of us knew what he had looked like before he had become a vampire. Though he was easily recognizable, it was also easy to see how Bella and Tony had at first missed the resemblance.

There were engraved metal plates around each portrait; one above, and two below. Below, the first plate held the name of the Capa in the painting, along with the dates she had lived; the second held the same for her twin. Each of these plates was also inscribed with a phrase written in Latin. I turned to Bella and asked her what these were for. She laughed.

"Our family has always been a little overly fond of Latin phrases." She said, smiling and turning toward the journals. My attention was drawn to more of these phrases, written on the walls above our heads. I had noticed them when I walked in, but had not paid them much attention. There were two above the journals, two above the portraits, and one, larger than the others, on the back wall. My family and I paused to listen as Bella explained their significance.

"The phrases are placed according to their content." She said. "The ones above the journals have to do with words and knowledge, and the ones above the portraits have to do with unity."

"I always hated Latin." Emmett interrupted. "What do they say?" He looked at Bella, who rolled her eyes good-naturedly but complied with his request, beginning with the phrases on the journal wall.

"'Multa paucis' means 'say much in few words.'" She began. "And 'Ex sientia vera' means 'from knowledge, truth.' These are fairly self-explanatory. They remind us of the importance of conciseness and learning from the past." She turned completely around, now focusing on the phrases above the portraits.

"'Ex unitae vires' means 'unity is strength' and 'Contraria Contrariis Curantur' means 'the opposite is cured with the opposite.' These refer to the strong bonds between twins and their harmonious talents." She turned to her right, facing the back wall, and the largest, most prominent phrase in the room. Her face became very somber and sad.

"This particular phrase is both the largest and most visible because it is the most important to us as a race." She explained. "The phrase 'Praesis ut prosis ne ut imperes' means 'Lead in order to serve, not in order to rule.' The reason there are so few of us left is that there are always those of us who are not content with serving our people. There are always those of us who are so power-hungry they are willing to sacrifice anyone and anything for more. First it was the Romanians Stefan and Vladimir, now it is Aro. Though thousands of years apart, their stories are the same. They were discontented and chose to take what they wanted, though it cost others their lives." She stopped, her face pained. She closed her eyes for a moment, sighing. Regaining her composure, she reopened her eyes and turned back to the portraits.

"The plates above each portrait are inscribed with the Latin phrase chosen to describe those particular twins as a unit." She said. "We each also have our own personal mottos inscribed on our name plates. All of these phrases often have to do with specific talents, ordinary or otherwise, that we possess." She walked over to the portrait in the second to last place. It was a painting of Mihaela and her twin, David who, according to his name plate, had died quite a few years ago. Bella gestured to the plate above the portrait.

"For example," she said, "The phrase 'Arcana Imperii' means 'invisible power.' Mihaela is telekinetic; her twin, David, was telepathic. Though one was mental, and the other physical, both of their powers worked where the eyes cannot see. Their personal phrases were more individualized. David's is actually a joke; to him at least. He chose just one word: 'Verbatim,' which means 'word for word.' He though it was hilarious, though no one else understood why. Haela's makes more sense. 'Mens agitat molem' means 'the mind moves the mass,' which of course referred to her telekinesis." Bella paused again, walking over to the painting of Jasper and Catalina.

"This one was always my favorite." She said, smiling. "Catalina and Jasper's joint motto is 'Ad captandum vulgus,' which means 'to capture the crowd.' You all know what Jasper can do; he can feel and manipulate the emotions of those around him. His sister, Catalina, has the power of magnetism; she can bring people from miles away. Apparently, they made quite a team; Lina drew the crowd, and Jasper made sure no one got out of hand." She smirked.

"Why do I get the feeling we didn't always have a good reason for doing so?" Jasper asked ruefully. Bella laughed.

"Because you were terrible children;" She answered, grinning. "You used to make puppets out of anyone who walked within twenty feet of you. Lina swears you two almost got burned at the stake at least a dozen times." She shook her head, returning to her story.

"Lina and Jasper's personal phrases are some of the few that are not about any talent they possess." She continued. "Lina's motto, 'Humilitas occidit superbiam,' means 'humility conquers pride.' Jasper's, 'Non sibi, sed patriae,' means 'not for self, but for country.' Both of these emphasized certain aspects of their character, rather than outward talents." She stopped, apparently done speaking. I realized then that I had not seen a portrait of her and Tony yet. I turned to the last painting, and found only a frame, with mounts for the engraved plates above and below it. I turned to Bella and Tony.

"Why is there no portrait of you two?" I asked.

"I haven't painted it yet." Tony answered, and then he turned to Bella.

"Speaking of which, we are taking photographs for exactly that purpose tomorrow and you are _not_ going to complain about it."

"I remember," she sighed exaggeratingly, "but I cannot promise that I won't complain."

"Whatever," he replied, "Is your dress fitted?"

"I haven't tried it on, but it should fit fine." She replied. Tony's eyes narrowed, but before he could retort, Alice jumped in.

"Bella, you can bring your dress to our house if you want." She said, eyes sparkling. "You can try it on there, and I can do any altering that needs to be done in no time flat."

"That is nice of you, Alice, but I'm not sure that is a good idea. I really do not want my scent at your house."

"What does that matter?" Alice asked, her nose wrinkling in confusion.

"She doesn't want James to be able to track her there." Tony replied. Emmett laughed.

"I don't think this guy is stupid enough to make a move on an entire house full of vampires." He said. Carlisle and Esme agreed, and Alice's face cleared.

"Well, that's settled," Alice said, "you're coming."

Bella opened her mouth to argue, but Alice's hand shot out to cover it. Bella eyed her ruefully, and nodded, rolling her eyes.

Tony snickered, and I laughed. Alice would not be swayed when it came to getting her own way. I was shaken from my musings when I another question suddenly presented itself to me.

"Bella," I began, "Have your engraving plates been done yet?"

"Yes." She answered simply, removing Alice's hand from her mouth. "Why?"

"Can I see them?" I asked. I truly wondered what phrase she had chosen for herself. She shrugged, walked over to the very end of the bookshelves, and took the very last journal out. I was confused for a moment before realizing that this must be one of hers. She opened the front cover and took out three engraved metal plates. She passed Jasper on her way back, and he read the topmost plate.

"You may like ours," he said, smiling, "but your joint motto is extremely fitting."

I saw it in his mind and had to agree; it was very appropriate.

"What is it?" Kate asked. Bella and I answered at the same time.

"'Compos Mentis,'" We replied in unison. I stayed silent as she continued, smiling.

"It means 'in control of the mind.' Both mine and Tony's abilities work solely in the mind." She went on to explain her and Tony's powers to the Denalis, who did not yet know about them. Tony took this opportunity to shadow himself and begin a conversation with Bella. The Denalis were confused, looking around to see who she was talking to. When Bella realized what had happened, she smacked her brother on the back of his head.

"Antonio Nicolo Swan!" She said, raising her voice. "If you do not stop doing that, I'm going to throw you through a wall!"

After everyone, including Bella, was done laughing, she resumed the conversation about the Latin engravings.

"Tony's personal phrase is unique in that it refers not to his supernatural talent, but to a completely ordinary one." She continued. "'Natura artis magistra' means 'nature is the teacher of art.' Though not alluding to the supernatural, it is extremely appropriate; he is a very gifted artist." She paused yet again, looking thoughtfully at the last engraving.

"And yours?" I prompted. She glanced up at me, then walked over to the frame where her and Tony's portrait would be, sliding the plates into their mounts as she spoke.

"Mine," she echoed thoughtfully, "mine is like Jasper and Lina's in that it has nothing to do with any talent I possess." Done mounting the plates, she stepped back.

"My motto is 'Usque ad Finem.'" She said. "It means 'Until the very end.' I thought it appropriate, because no matter the outcome of my own life, I am the last Capa." She looked at the plates thoughtfully before turning away. She noticed Jasper studying the portrait of him and Catalina and walked over to him.

"Are you okay?" She asked. Jasper turned his head, grinning ruefully.

"I'm fine," he answered, "but it's extremely annoying to know you should remember something, and yet be unable to do so." He sighed, and Bella suddenly grinned mischievously.

"We could always knock you upside the head and see if it jogs your memory." She teased. He chuckled.

"I'll do it!" Emmett volunteered. Bella laughed.

"Not if I beat you to it." She said playfully.

"I wouldn't try it, Bella." Emmett answered, smirking. "I might hurt you."

Bella, Jasper, and I rolled our eyes simultaneously, while Tony opened his mouth to reply to Emmett. When I heard what he was thinking, my eyebrows darted up in surprise.

"Don't start something you won't finish, Emmett." He warned, only half joking. "Bella's had a six-pack since she was eleven years old." He laughed as Bella hissed angrily at him. I was suddenly unable to hear his thoughts, and I laughed, realizing that Bella had forced their connection back open so she could yell at him.

"Please," Emmett snorted at Tony, "I could throw her halfway to Russia."

"Oh, I know," Tony said, apparently choosing to ignore his sister. "I don't doubt your strength. I'm just saying that it takes a lot of discipline for someone that physically young, even a supernatural, to develop that much muscle. Bella has one heck of a determination streak; she would find a way to take you down if you gave her a reason."

"So why don't you shut your trap before I have a reason to take _you_ down." Bella growled. Tony just laughed, stopping only when his phone vibrated. He quickly pulled it out of his pocket and answered. Everyone began talking amongst themselves again, and Bella looked away, lost in thought.

"Sì?" Tony said, answering his phone in Italian. He listened for a moment, his face growing angrier every second. I wished Bella had let their connection close again, so I could hear what was happening. The sounds coming from the phone were all incoherent background noise, as if someone had pocket-dialed his phone. Tony looked up at his sister.

"Isabella," he said, speaking quietly, but clearly. Bella's head snapped up, alarmed by Tony's use of her full name. He reached out to hand her the phone.

"E' per voi." He said. **(It's for you).**

"Perché non mi chiami?" Bella asked, furrowing her brow in confusion. **(Then why not call me?)**

"Fidati di me, si deve sentire questo." Tony replied. **(Trust me, you should hear this).**

"Cosa c'è di sbagliato?" Bella asked, alarmed. **(What is wrong?)**

Tony said nothing, only gesturing for her to take the phone. She did, and held it to her ear. It only took a few seconds for her to become even angrier than her brother. In a movement almost too fast for me to see, Tony's phone exploded against the door, and Bella's eyes and teeth changed as she snarled wrathfully. The look on her face was one of unbridled fury that scared even Emmett. In the next second, she was out the door, followed quickly by Tony and myself.

"Qualcuno sta andando a perdere un arto." Garrett mumbled, darting after us. **(Someone is going to lose a limb).**

Everyone else followed, wondering what on earth was going on. We followed Bella back through the trap door and through the mansion. As we reached the other side, I began to hear something of a mental uproar. It sounded like there were quite a few people gathered somewhere underground, but there was not one coherent thought to be heard. Jasper also began to pick up on a great deal of anger coming from the same place. I had no doubt this was where we were headed.

We passed through two more hidden doors, the second revealing a set of stairs that led down. Bella had stopped as she reached the bottom of the stairs, and was staring at a door in front of her, trying to control her anger. After about one minute she succeeded, her eyes and teeth regaining their normal appearance. Bella's countenance settled into a dangerous, devastating calm that was, quite honestly, more frightening than her anger. We followed her through the door and were met with a terrible sight. Whatever we had been expecting to see, this wasn't it.

There was a large group of people gathered in one corner of the room. There were both Protettori and Vampires, and they looked like a pack of wolves clustered around their kill. I still could not make out any coherent thoughts or words. Jasper winced at their anger and reflexively sent a wave of calm through the room, and they began to back off. As they cleared the area, we could see what, or rather who, the people had clustered around.

Backed into the corner was a vampire woman, and the Denalis, my family, and I all froze in shock as we saw a familiar face. Catalina was panting and glaring at the forms retreating from her. Whatever had happened, she had put up a fight, though she had lost an arm in the process. Bella stiffened, struggling to retain her composure. She leveled a hard stare at the group that had retreated to the opposite side of the room. Lina's arm was lying about ten feet away from her, and Tony went to retrieve it for her. He walked back to her and as she reattached it, I heard what had happened in her thoughts.

Catalina had been a source of contention for years. When James and, a few months later, Sarah, had begun working against the Protettori, many wanted them put down. Sarah refused to allow this to happen; she could not stand by and let her children be killed. Mihaela, who was Capa at the time, stood by her, not wanting more dissention between the Cape, and that was that.

Unfortunately, James and Sarah made a lot of trouble in the meantime, and the Protettori became restless. They again petitioned for their demise, and were again shut down. When they found out that James had kidnapped Bella and Tony, and later tortured Bella, they all but ripped Catalina in half. Mihaela managed to regain control, and when Bella and Tony were brought home, and Bella assumed the role of Capa, she stood by Lina as well. While measures were taken to stop James and Sarah, she refused to allow them to be killed without Catalina's consent. The cycle began all over again, reaching the breaking point when these particular people learned of James's attack tonight.

When Lina had come home, she had stopped here first to look for Bella, and was cornered by the group here, told of the attack, and was attacked herself. The attack was led by a vampire named Jensin, who did not particularly care for the Protettori, but had witnessed James and Sarah's less-than-subtle tendencies, and knew they were risking the exposure of our kind. Bella had not met him yet, and was presently glaring at him and everyone who had helped him. Without looking away, she addressed Jasper.

"Thank you, Jasper." She said. "You can release them now; they will not attempt anything else."

"Are you sure?" Jasper answered warily. Bella's eyes narrowed at the group.

"They would not dare." She said in a low voice, almost growling. Jasper complied, and Jensin stepped forward, his face once again furious.

"You don't know what I would dare." He snarled. "You may have these other imbeciles trained like puppies, but I'm not one to take orders."

"What is your name?" Bella asked calmly.

"None of your business!" He barked.

"His name is Jensin." I interjected. Bella nodded as Jensin snarled at me, and I raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well, Jensin," Bella began, "you have no authority here, and if you cannot abide by the decisions made here, you will have to leave."

"I don't think you heard me;" Jensin said, stepping forward dangerously, "I don't take orders." He got right in Bella's face, and I started to step forward, but was held back by Garrett.

"You aren't as durable as her," Jensin continued, pointing at Catalina, "but I'll rip your arm off too; without blinking." He glared, still only inches from her. She held his gaze unblinkingly as she answered.

"As you wish," She said simply. In less than a second, both of his arms were on the opposite side of the room, and Bella had kicked him back into a wall. She followed, getting into his face, refusing to let him move.

"If you ever attempt to harm my family again, you will lose more than you arms." She threatened calmly. There was no bluff in her voice or her face. Jensin, now openly frightened, quickly agreed, and Bella turned her attention to the group of people who had helped him attack Catalina. Given their numbers, I was surprised Lina had lost only her arm. Their faces were a mixture of fear, defiance, and shame as Bella addressed them.

"The same thing goes for all of you." She said, quiet but firm. "I want all of you out of this room and off of this property this instant." She stared them down, and one of the more ashamed ones stepped forward.

"But boss, we-"

"Now!" She snarled; her face changing as she finally let her fury loose. "And take that imbecile's arms with you."

They all started quickly for the door, one of them snatching up Jensin's arms on the way. The Denalis followed them out quietly, saying that they were planning on renting a house nearby through the end of the summer, and they would see us later.

Catalina, her arm reattached, started toward Bella, whose back was facing her, but Tony held her back. Bella was struggling again with her anger, but without anything to direct it toward; she was quickly losing the battle. She was standing slightly diagonal to us, so I could only see half of her face, but I could see the internal struggle on her countenance. I wanted to help her, but I knew I would be useless. Jasper went over to attempt to help her, but she stopped him.

"Please don't, Jasper." She said. "I appreciate you wanting to help me, but I am fairly certain that I would only hurt you."

Jasper nodded, concerned, and began to walk back toward us. As he looked up, his eyes met mine, and he was struck with an idea. He was remembering how Alice was able to calm him when he had the same problem earlier, and believed the same would work for Bella with me. I frowned, unsure, and his thoughts became more insistent.

"_If you don't at least try, she could hurt someone."_ He said silently, and I had to agree. Bella's emotions were becoming more unstable by the second. Resolved, I darted to her side and placed my hand on her shoulder, feeling the now familiar and intense reaction that occurred whenever I touched her. She blinked a few times, calming a bit, but not enough. I turned her around to face me and gently tilted her face upward, forcing her to look me in the eye. She blinked again, and the anger suddenly and completely drained from her, allowing her eyes and teeth to return to normal.

"Thank you." She said with a small smile. She turned around, and was surprised to find Catalina staring at her back. Lina was extremely distressed, and Bella darted over to her.

"Lina, I am so sorry," she began, "We weren't expecting you home so soon, and with all the excitement tonight, I didn't have time to grab anything to cover my back."

"No," Catalina said shaking her head. "You should not have to make yourself uncomfortable to make me feel better. It is time I came to terms with the atrocities my children have committed." She looked down before continuing.

"I cannot help you in this, Bella;" she said, choking on her words, "But neither can I stop you any longer." She closed her eyes, fighting with herself.

"I am truly sorry, Lina." Bella said; her voice thick with emotion. "If I thought there was any other way…" She trailed off.

"I know." Catalina replied. "I should go now; I need to distract myself before I change my mind." She turned to leave, but Bella stopped her.

"Did Nio tell you why he called?" She asked, confused as to why Lina had not asked about Jasper.

"No," Lina replied, shaking her head, still looking at the ground. "But when I got here, I just assumed it was because of James."

Bella smiled softly, and turned slightly, looking at Jasper. She cocked an eyebrow at him, giving him the chance to leave. He frowned slightly, but came forward with a determined look. Hearing the movement, Catalina looked up, hissing in surprise as she saw her brother. Her features switched between anger, surprise, and happiness. He waited patiently as she collected herself. When she finally sorted through her emotions, she sighed, looking around the room at the rest of my family. Her assessment done, she turned to Jasper.

"I am glad you were not alone." She said with a small smile. "That has been my biggest fear the past two centuries. How are you?"

"Right now I'm irritated." He said, frowning. "My mind knows I should remember you, but I don't."

"I can give your memories back." Lina replied softly. "But you may not want me to."

"Why wouldn't I want you too?" Jasper asked, furrowing his brow. Catalina hesitated, Tony frowned, and Bella became thoughtful. I saw the answer Lina was reluctant to give in Lina's mind, and turned to Jasper.

"The process is physically painful." I told him. He looked at me, startled, while Lina looked annoyed.

"Memories, like everything else in the brain, are controlled by chemicals and electrical impulses." She explained. "When you shut me out, you altered these, and your transformation into a vampire cemented them. Changing them back is not pleasant."

"But I don't think it will be painful." Bella interjected. Catalina looked at her skeptically.

"How can you be sure?" She asked, but Jasper interrupted.

"It doesn't matter;" he argued, "This is my fault anyway." He was even more determined than before. Bella walked over to him, and smiled reassuringly.

"Don't worry," she said, "It won't hurt you." It almost sounded as if there was a double meaning to the words, but she beckoned Lina over, and soon Jasper and Catalina were facing each other, with Bella still near Jasper's side. Jasper was looking at Bella suspiciously, which caused me to look at her suspiciously. He knew she was up to something but could not figure out what. He refocused on his sister, who was holding her arm out toward him. He extended his own, and they grasped each other's forearms.

Catalina closed her eyes and prepared to reopen their telepathic connection. As she did, Jasper hissed, but his pain was very quickly diminished to almost nothing. Though it was not completely gone, it was only barely there, and all that was left was the disorientation from having nineteen years of memories come flooding back into his head. After a few minutes, he shook his head, the disorientation and pain now completely gone. He turned to Bella, who had rested her hand on his arm, with a shocked expression, and he suddenly realized what had bothered him earlier. Apparently, her empathetic abilities were more developed than she had let on. She had taken the pain that Jasper was supposed to have suffered, but left all of his other emotions alone.

As the shock of this realization wore off, we noticed that Bella was shaking considerably. Jasper could feel the pain becoming too much for her, and her knees suddenly buckled. I was immediately at her side as Jasper caught her. He tried to, but was unable help her force the pain away. He suspected this was because the pain was not her own. A thought entered his mind, and I snarled at him. He glared at me.

"There is no other way, Edward." He barked. "Her own pain has to overpower the pain she took from me before I can help her." He leveled a stare at me, waiting impatiently for me to realize the truth of his words. There were gasps from our family as they realized what had happened. I finally nodded, a pained look on my face, and Jasper slammed Bella's back into the ground, wincing. I knew he hated to do it, but I could not help feeling furious at anyone who hurt Bella. It only took a few seconds for Bella's pain to supersede what she took from Jasper, and he quickly suppressed it, pulling her to her feet. She shook her head to clear it, and looked up at Jasper.

"Thank you." She said sincerely, ignoring his wince. "I doubt I would have thought of that on my own."

"You lied, you know." He said, cocking an eyebrow. Bella's brow furrowed.

"What do you mean?" She asked. Jasper's eyes narrowed.

"You said it wouldn't hurt." He winced, remembering her pain, and she pursed her lips.

"I did not lie; I said it wouldn't hurt _you_." She replied. Jasper frowned, but let it go, once again preoccupied with the memories he had only just recovered.

"Well," Tony said, addressing Bella, "I am going to go sketch on the roof for awhile, are you good?" His casual tone belied his concern.

"I am fine, Nio." She replied, smiling gently. He nodded, and excused himself. This started a quick exodus. We all knew that Jasper and Catalina would need to talk, and so we said goodbye, and followed Bella out of the room and into the main section of the mansion. My family decided to wait for Jasper at home, and Alice reminded Bella to come to our home with her dress after school. Bella pursed her lips thoughtfully. Alice suddenly had a vision of Bella riding up to our house on a motorcycle. At first, I thought it was Tony's, but this was a BMW, and Tony's was a Ducati. She also saw Bella asking her to take her dress tonight because she could not fit it on her bike. Bella opened her mouth to speak, but Alice beat her to it.

"Sure!" She said; having already seen the question Bella was going to ask. Bella looked confused for a moment, and then laughed softly, realizing what had occurred.

"Thank you, Alice." She said. I raised my eyebrow at her; picturing Bella riding a motorcycle made me nervous. I knew it was irrational; her reflexes were far superior to humans, but it still bothered me. Bella knew exactly what I was thinking, and she rolled her eyes at me. I shook my head; this woman never ceased to amaze me.

Alice followed Bella back to one of the bedrooms where Tony sometimes slept and they both kept clothes that they only used here. When they came back, Alice was holding a full-length garment bag with a pocket at the bottom to hold shoes and accessories. Bella thanked her again and we left, albeit reluctantly on my part. I had to admit, though, I was looking forward to having Bella in my home tomorrow, even if it was only to see Alice. I began running faster, using my superior speed to pass my family. Meeting Bella had inspired me, and I had been fiddling with some new music. It had begun to take the form of a song, but it was not done yet, and I wanted to finish it before Bella came tomorrow. When we arrived at our house, I immediately sat down at my grand piano. I wasted no time getting to work.

* * *

**Tony Swan**

This was absolutely ridiculous! I had made fun of Izzy for not confronting her feelings for Edward, and here I was doing the exact same thing with Tanya. Although I doubted I would have recognized my own feelings if I hadn't spent the last few months watching Izzy and Edward fight with theirs. Izzy had worn an almost constant smirk all evening, though she had refrained from razzing me as I had her, and for that I was grateful. I also felt slightly guilty; there was something I hadn't told her.

We had met before, Tanya and I. It was about one month before we moved back to Forks. I had gone to Alaska to visit Garrett. The rest of his family was hunting, and he was the only one in the house. We were discussing how best to plan Izzy's part and how best to spread the word discretely. We needed as many Protettori as we could find to attend, and I hated that these people would decide my sister's fate.

In the middle of our conversation, Tanya came home, apparently early, and was not happy. When she finally stopped ranting long enough for either of us to get a word in, Garrett told her that I was not human. She looked shocked, and I quickly demonstrated the truth of Garrett's words. I spent almost the entire month in Alaska, though not with the Denali family, and had been surprised at the connection I felt to Tanya. Garrett would come to town to have our discussions and Tanya insisted on coming with him. She said she wanted to know what in the world was going on. I never told my sister that I met anyone in Alaska but Garrett. I hid this from her even better than I hid the song she had just discovered. She obviously knew now that there was a connection between us, but she did not know that it had started months ago. I figured I should probably tell her now, before she found out from Garrett.

I shook my head, forcing my mind back to the present. I was sitting exactly where I told my sister I would be; on the mansion's roof with my sketchpad and a few of my graphite and charcoal pencils. I was absent-mindedly sketching the forest and the mountains behind it, while my mind was working through my stupidity. Sketching always helped me sort through my emotions; I used it the same way Izzy used her music. This was one of those rare nights in Forks where there were no clouds, and the moonlight gave a subtle beauty to the landscape. I almost wished I was painting it instead, but I knew that I could always draw this picture from my memory later, and so I contented myself with my black and white sketch.

As I finished it, I was aware of a presence behind me, and I knew exactly who it was. It was insane; I barely knew this woman, and had already memorized everything from her footsteps to her scent. Without looking up or turning around, I greeted her.

"Hello Tanya." I said simply. She came up behind me and looked over my shoulder. I heard her exhale in surprise.

"That's beautiful." She said quietly. I chuckled softly.

"You don't have to sound so surprised." I teased.

"I'm not, really." She answered. "I knew there had to be a reason your motto was about art. You are extraordinarily talented."

"Thank you." I said, surprised. "I'm not really focused on my drawing at the moment; I'm using it to get my head straight."

"Wow," she said, "I'd love to see what you can do when you're actually trying."

"Would you?" I asked, looking at her thoughtfully. She nodded absently, and I made a very sudden and surprising decision.

"I can show you if you'd like." I hadn't been happy when Izzy showed the Cullens my studio, but I didn't say anything because I had planned on doing the same to her. I never really wanted anyone but Izzy to see my studio, so it surprised me when I found myself eager to show Tanya. I didn't let my face betray this emotion as I waited for her answer. Tanya was looking at me thoughtfully when she spoke.

"I'd like that." She said. I laughed.

"You sound surprised at yourself." I commented. She frowned slightly, and I knew I'd offended her. I apologized as she sat down on the railing surrounding the flat section of the roof we stood on.

"I'm sorry." I said softly. "I'm not laughing at you; I'm laughing because I surprised myself as well. I don't usually show people my work."

She said nothing, looking out at the forest thoughtfully, and I flipped the page in my sketchpad and began a new drawing, giving her space to sort through her thoughts. I wasn't paying any attention to what I was drawing; I looked at the trees or, more often, Tanya's profile. If she noticed my staring, she didn't let on. When my hand stopped moving, I looked down at my sketchpad, and exhaled in shock. Tanya looked up, alarmed. I shook my head in amazement. I had drawn an extremely detailed picture of Tanya's profile as she sat on the railing. Her legs were dangling down toward the sloped part of the roof, and her arms rested next to her sides on the railing as she stared out over the trees.

"Apparently, I do some of my best work when I'm paying absolutely no attention to what I'm doing." I said, still shaking my head. I started to close the sketchpad, not really wanting her to see, but suddenly, Tanya snatched it out of my hands. I opened my mouth to protest, but she had already turned the pad toward her, and was staring at the picture. Her eyes widened a bit, but softened a moment later. I watched her warily; worried about what she thought of the portrait I had drawn. When she finally looked up at me, it was to ask an unexpected question.

"Why don't you show people your work?" She asked. Surprised at the question, it took me a moment to answer.

"I suppose it's too personal." I answered slowly. "I don't want people to see that much of me."

"But you want to show me?" She asked. I paused, debating whether I should tell her or not. After a moment, I decided it didn't matter.

"Honestly, I do." I answered frankly. "Don't ask me why, because I couldn't tell you, but I would like you to see what I do. If you want to, that is." I added hastily, realizing that after this new information, she might be reluctant.

"I very much want to." She answered. "Strange as it seems, ever since we met when you visited Garrett, I've wanted to know everything I can about you."

"I know the feeling." I said, chuckling softly. "It's unexpected, maybe, but not strange." I walked over to her and held my hand out. She took it, swinging her legs over the railing and hopping down. We walked over to the other side and jumped to the ground. I held the main door open for her, and led the way toward my studio. We met Jasper on his way out, and nodded in greeting. He raised an eyebrow at Tanya and smirked at both of us, but otherwise did not comment. He continued on his way home, and we reached my studio without meeting anyone else.

When we arrived at my studio, I held the door open for her, unconsciously holding my breath as I watched for Tanya's reaction. As she entered, her eyes widened, and she gasped softly.

"Tony, this is amazing." She said, walking farther into the room and looking around her in astonishment. I closed the door behind me and watched her, shocked by how much she seemed to belong here. Even Izzy had never really belonged in this room, though I had no problem with her being here. It just felt right to have Tanya here, where I kept my most personal drawings and paintings.

When Tanya was done examining my work, she turned to me.

"Your work is incredible." She said. "I've never seen anything like it."

"Thank you." I replied softly. "That means a lot coming from you."

"Really?" She asked, giving me a strange look.

"Really," I answered, smiling. She was silent for a moment, still looking at me.

"Where is your sister?" She asked suddenly. I looked at her curiously, wondering what she wanted with Izzy. I silently asked Izzy where she was before answering Tanya.

"She's in her studio," I replied, "but why?"

"I have a question for her." She answered cryptically. I cocked my head at her, trying to figure out what was she was thinking. She raised an eyebrow at me, and I shrugged, turning around and opening the door for her. We walked across the expansive hallway, and paused outside the door to Izzy's studio. I silently requested entry, knowing that Izzy may not want Tanya to hear whatever it was she was working on; it was why she had sound-proofed the room in the first place. Izzy gave the okay, and I opened the door, letting Tanya enter before me.

* * *

**Bella Swan**

After the Cullens left, I went straight to my studio. I wanted to finish the song that Edward had inspired. I did not know why, but I had a sudden need for it to be finished. Maybe it was because I had finally admitted to myself that I loved Edward. Now that my self-delusions were out of the way, my fingers itched to play the song to its end. When I entered my studio, I went immediately to my piano and lifted the fallboard. I worked through what I had already played again, letting my fingers go along with the natural flow of the song. I paused every now and then to write what I had so far on staff paper, or to experiment with or rework part of the song. I was not quite done when I heard Nio's voice in my head.

"_Where are you, Iz?"_ He asked simply. Confused, I answered, but received no reply. Mentally shrugging it off, I returned to my song. A few moments later, he was back.

"_May we come in?"_ He asked. I laughed softly as I realized that Tanya was with him. I was surprised by how quickly their relationship had developed, but I was happy for Nio.

"_Of course,"_ I replied. I finished the bar I was working on, and the final notes faded away as Tanya stepped in, followed closely by Nio. I stood, closing the fallboard and walking over to them.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" I asked, curious as to why Nio had brought Tanya here.

"Tanya has a question for you." Nio explained. Tanya darted a glance at him and pursed her lips. I knew that whatever her question was, she wanted to speak to me alone. Luckily, I had the perfect excuse to give us a few minutes alone. I turned to Nio.

"Our tickets for the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Boston Symphony Hall have arrived." I said. "They are in the entry hall, and I forgot to pick them up on my way back here. Would you mind grabbing them for me?" I smiled innocently at his suspicious look, and he finally relented.

"Fine," he sighed, rolling his eyes. "I can take a hint; let me know when you two are done with your gossip party."

"Thank you, we will." Tanya replied, smirking. I laughed as Nio left, muttering something about 'women.' When he was gone, I turned to Tanya.

"Was there something you needed?" I asked. She was suddenly slightly nervous, as if she did not know how to word what she wanted to say. When she did speak, it was only hesitatingly.

"I just wanted to know… how you felt about Nio and me." She said.

"What do you mean?" I asked, genuinely confused at her statement. Her feelings were suddenly resolved, and when she spoke again, it was with determination.

"I know your opinion means a lot to him." She explained. "And if we get any more involved with each other, he may very well have to leave you, but I would never want to cause problems between the two of you." She looked me directly in the eye, and I could both see and feel the sincerity there. I knew that she cared about Nio very much to come to me this way, and I was extremely happy that Nio had found her. I smiled softly as I answered her.

"Tanya," I began softly, "Nio and I are very close, but we knew that eventually we would have to part ways. As Capa, I rely on my Gemello as my partner, but he was never meant to stay with me forever. It was for this same reason that Jasper stayed in Texas when Catalina moved here." I paused here, smiling. Besides, distance doesn't diminish our mental bond whatsoever, so we will always be able to contact each other." I paused, looking Tanya in the eye.

"I can feel how much you care for my brother," I continued, "and I could not be happier that he found someone he cares for as much as you."

"Thank you." She replied; a bit shocked at my speech. "I suppose I was worried that you wouldn't approve. Almost the only interaction you have seen between us is fighting, arguing, or both." She frowned, and I laughed.

"Has Nio told you what happened when Edward and I first met?" I asked. She shook her head, and I grinned at her.

"The first time Edward and I saw each other, we tried to kill each other." I explained. Her eyes widened for a moment before she too began laughing.

"So unless you are going to let the age difference bother you, I don't think you have anything to worry about." I said, winking at her.

"Thank you." She said softly. I smiled at her, and let Nio know he could come back in. He walked in, looking at us both warily. Tanya and I rolled our eyes simultaneously, and he laughed, handing me the tickets. I counted them, making sure there were enough, and realized that we had somehow received an extra ticket for the Art museum. There was a note attached, explaining that Nio had paid for one too many tickets, and so they had sent the extra, hoping to avoid a hassle with refunds. I rolled my eyes at their not-so-subtle attempt to keep our money, and was suddenly struck with an idea. I gave the extra ticket to Tanya, explaining the situation.

"You should go," I said, "it will be fun. Though, I suppose you wouldn't want to leave your family."

"No, I'll go." She answered. "Garrett is helping Catalina prepare for something in Oneonta, New York, anyway, and everyone else is planning on going with him. I can meet them afterward. Nio and I exchanged glances; Oneonta was the city where the celebration of my becoming the Capa would take place. Lina must have recruited Garrett, knowing he would petition strongly in my favor. I smiled at this; Lina was extremely clever. I turned to Tanya.

"That is fantastic." I said sincerely. "We are going to Oneonta after we are done at our respective events; we can all meet there."

She agreed, and said goodbye as Nio walked her out. I spent a few moments reflecting on my conversation with Tanya, and was extremely happy that she and Nio had found each other.

Before long though, I was again drawn to my piano, my fingers still impatient to finish Edward's song.

* * *

**A/N - Well, what did you think? I know there was a lot of Latin and Italian, but I tried to make it not confusing.**

**What did you think of the Latin mottos? Jasper and Lina? Tony and Tanya? Tanya and Bella?**

**Please review and let me know! I really like it when you guys review. =D**

**I think I'm almost done with this story. What do you guys think about a sequel? With the Volturi as the main problem?**

**I need ideas though. Why would they be bothering Bella? Besides Renesmee, I don't want it to be just like Breaking Dawn.**

**Let me know what you think in your reviews. Or you could PM me.**


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